23.05.2025 10:36
The U.S. Department of the Treasury, under the direction of President Donald Trump, is gradually phasing out the penny, which has been in use for over 200 years and is worth one cent, or one-hundredth of a dollar.
The U.S. Treasury, under the direction of President Donald Trump, will discontinue the circulation of a new cent, also known as a penny, in early next year.
After that, there will not be enough cents for daily cash transactions, and businesses will need to start rounding up or down to the nearest 5 cents.
TRUMP HAD GIVEN THE INSTRUCTION
In a post made in February, Trump had requested the Treasury to stop the production of pennies. Since then, bills to halt production have been introduced in both chambers of Congress.
PRODUCTION OF 1 CENT COSTS ABOUT 4 CENTS
The U.S. Mint anticipates annual savings of $56 million in reduced material costs. Despite being worth 1 cent, the production of a penny costs about 4 cents. The Treasury has stated that it expects savings to increase when it stops using some of its production facilities.
ONE OF THE FIRST COINS
The U.S. penny was one of the first coins minted after the establishment of the Mint in 1792. It became the smallest denomination after the abolition of the half penny in 1857.