A. M. U.S. President Donald Trump announced this sunday, through his Truth Social platform, that he ordered the Treasury Department to stop the production of new pennies, arguing that their manufacture generates losses in the millions. “For too long, these pennies are costing us more than twice their value – it’s wasteful!” he declared. The measure is part of a series of executive actions pushed by his government to reduce what it considers unnecessary expenses.
According to U.S. Mint data, US$85.3 million was lost in fiscal year 2024 by producing 3.2 billion pennies, with a unit cost of US$0.037, surpassing the US$0.031 of the previous year. In addition, nickels also represent losses, being produced for US$0.14 each. Trump had not addressed this issue during his campaign, but the proposal would coincide with recent recommendations from Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which questioned the economic viability of the coin.
However, the elimination of the centavo faces legal obstacles. Coin specifications, including the centavo, are regulated by Congress. In recent decades, congressmen have introduced proposals to remove the penny or round prices to the nearest multiple of five cents, without success. The Congressional Research Service notes that the issue resurfaces periodically, especially as production costs rise and daily use declines.
Advocates of eliminating the penny, such as Canada – which did so in 2012 – stress the tax savings, streamlining of transactions and the global trend toward more practical currencies. However, critics warn of possible inflationary effects and cultural resistance, given the deep-rooted presence of the penny in the U.S. identity.
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