CRISIS brings opportunities, they say. Golden ones too, with the fall in gold prices.

For some Singaporeans, it means heading to the pawnshops.

These savvy small-time gold investors are snapping up second-hand gold jewellery from these shops, saving up to 30 per cent on what they would pay for similar pieces from jewellery stores.

Gold slumped to US$705.53 per ounce on Oct 23, the lowest level since last September. It picked up slightly to US$734 yesterday.

People who go to jewellery stores now pay about $40 per gram of gold. But this excludes taxes and workmanship costs, which can come up to as much as $7 per gram.

On the other hand, most pawnshops are now charging only about $34 to $35 per gram of gold for their used jewellery, and this price includes tax.

Read the full story in The Sunday Times today