People 'Coming Out Of The Trenches' To Trade In Old Jewelry As Gold Prices Jump

NEW YORK (CBS Local) -- With gold prices rising to a six-year high, people are starting to cash in by trading in their old jewelry.

Refiners and recyclers of gold, including Empire Gold Buyers and House of Kahn Estate Jewelers, say business is booming as investor interest in the precious metal returns after it mostly languished below $1,350 an ounce for years.

"People are coming out of the trenches," Empire Gold Buyers CEO Gene Furman told Bloomberg. "Cartier, Rolexes, Tiffanys, Van Cleefs: we see an uptick in the luxury market because people need to raise money."

"The tides are turning big time," said Tobina Kahn, president of House of Kahn Estate Jewelers. "As a gemologist, I'm a buyer, if I can see that gold is continuing to go up, I'm more confident about paying more for it than having it go down."

On Tuesday, Gold climbed for a sixth straight session to settle at $1,423.44 an ounce in the spot market in New York.