President Donald Trump Calls to Stop Minting New Pennies, Citing Rising Production Costs

VICTORVILLE, Calif. (VVNG.com) — President Donald Trump has called for the U.S. Treasury to stop minting new pennies, citing the coin's rising production costs and

President Donald Trump has called for a pause on U.S. Treasury’s production of pennies, citing the coin’s rising costs and calling the continued manufacturing “wasteful.”

“For far too long the United States has been making pennies which cost us more than 2 cents. Unbelievable. We’re continuing to mint pennies at a huge loss. This is so wasteful! I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Thursday.

While the president can direct the Treasury to pause production, eliminating a U.S. coin entirely still requires Congressional approval—a step that has failed to advance in previous attempts.

It Now Costs 3.69 Cents to Make A Penny

According to the U.S. Mint’s most recent report, it cost 3.69 cents to produce a single penny in fiscal year 2024—more than triple the coin’s face value. This marks the 19th consecutive year that pennies have been made at a financial loss.

The increase is largely tied to the rising cost of materials, particularly copper. Although pennies are mostly made of zinc, they are coated in copper, and copper prices rose by over five percent last year.

The nickel is also being produced at a loss, with each five-cent coin costing nearly 14 cents to mint. Other coins continue to be profitable:

These figures were confirmed in a February 2025 article published by NBC/Nexstar, which examined the cost breakdown of circulating U.S. coins.

How It Could Affect Local Businesses

If penny production slows or stops, businesses across the Victor Valley could begin rounding cash transactions to the nearest five cents.

For example, a bill totaling $4.97 might be rounded up to $5.00, or $4.92 might be rounded down to $4.90. This change would only apply to cash transactions, while card payments would remain exact.

For many local businesses—especially small restaurants, food vendors, and retail shops where cash is still widely used—this could mean:

Customers who rely on cash, including unbanked residents, may feel the impact more directly. According to the FDIC, an estimated 5.6 million households in the U.S. remain unbanked and continue to rely on coins and physical currency.

Rounding practices may also affect the total cost of goods, depending on how businesses implement the change. Some may choose to round in the customer’s favor to maintain goodwill, while others may round up to simplify cash handling.

Why The Penny Still Exists

Despite its production cost, the penny remains in circulation for several reasons.

Former U.S. Mint officials have explained that while the Mint loses money on the penny and nickel, it profits on other coins, such as quarters and dollar coins, which helps offset the losses.

There is also lobbying pressure from industries that supply the metals used in pennies, particularly zinc. Additionally, prior legislative efforts to reform coin production have failed to pass. In both 2020 and 2023, bipartisan bills aimed at reducing minting costs stalled in Congress.

“Even though you’re losing $80 million a year on one single product line, $80 million is a pittance compared to a $4 trillion budget,” former U.S. Mint Director Ed Moy told NBC4.

What Comes Next

While President Trump’s directive has brought renewed attention to the future of the penny, the U.S. Mint continues to produce them.

Any permanent decision would require Congressional legislation—something experts agree is unlikely to happen quickly.