&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "'Penny for your thoughts': US stops minting pennies after 232 years. Here's why")
The United States has officially stopped minting pennies after more than two centuries, bringing an end to one of the country's oldest and most familiar coins. The final penny was struck on Wednesday (Nov 12) at the Philadelphia Mint by US Treasurer Brandon Beach, marking the close of a 232-year production run. Acting Mint Director Kristie McNally said that while the general production of new pennies "concludes today, the penny's legacy lives on."
Will the US pennies be removed from the market?
According to AFP, around 300 billion pennies are currently in circulation, and for now, Americans can still use the one-cent coin. However, with the end of production, no new ones will enter the system. The move, long debated in Washington, is part of an effort to reduce unnecessary government spending.
President Donald Trump had first called for the penny’s retirement in February, arguing that it was important to slash government spending.
Why has the US stopped production of pennies?
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Producing a coin worth one cent costs more than three cents. As Trump put it, "For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful!". In his February "Truth" the POTUS said that he instructed his Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies. "Let's rip the waste out of our great nations budget, even if it's a penny at a time," he added on Truth Social.
The penny has been part of American life since 1792, when it was authorised by the Coinage Act. Early versions were made of pure copper and much larger than the coins used today. Modern pennies are composed of copper-plated zinc, a change introduced in 1982 to reduce costs. Despite the switch, the price of production has continued to climb — from 1.42 cents a decade ago to 3.69 cents today, according to the Mint.
The debate over the coin's future has been ongoing for years, with repeated proposals in Congress to phase it out. However, the previous proposals all failed.
