A spike in gas prices followed by the deepening recession has led to all-time highs in pawn profits, the Chicago Tribune reports. Chief among the items sold? Video game consoles.
"We're seeing a lot of expensive video game systems, PlayStation 3s and X-Box and others, and a lot of LCDs (flat-screen televisions)," Ace Pawn Shop manager Chris Banul told the Associated Press.
Cash America, the biggest pawnbroking group in the country, pulled in more than $1 billion in revenues for the first time in its 25-year history last year.
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Pawning things. That's got to be the worst. But if you had to, where in your list of pawnable items would your console hit?
Recessions boosts pawn shop business [Chicago Tribune]