Washington, DC: United States President Donald Trump has ordered the Treasury Department to stop minting pennies, citing their high production costs and calling the practice “wasteful.”
To be clear, what the @DOGE team and @USTreasury have jointly agreed makes sense is the following:
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 8, 2025
– Require that all outgoing government payments have a payment categorization code, which is necessary in order to pass financial audits. This is frequently left blank, making…
Trump made the announcement on Truth Social after attending the first half of Super Bowl 59, stating:
“For far too long, the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful! I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies. Let’s rip the waste out of our great nation’s budget, even if it’s a penny at a time.”
Rationale Behind the Decision
A January 22 post from the Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, revealed that each penny costs over 3 cents to produce, costing U.S. taxpayers over $179 million in FY2023. The U.S. Mint manufactured 4.5 billion pennies in the same year, accounting for 40% of all circulating coins.
New Steel and Aluminum Tariffs Announced
In addition to the penny decision, President Trump also announced new tariffs on steel and aluminum imports set to take effect on Monday, February 12.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One en route to the Super Bowl, Trump stated:
“Very simply, if you charge us, we charge them.”
The new tariffs will impose a 25% charge on all steel and aluminum imports entering the United States. Trump previously threatened to implement a universal 10% or 20% tariff and had ordered a broader trade review set for completion by April 1.
According to Politico, Trump confirmed that these tariffs would apply to every nation, with an official announcement expected on Monday or Tuesday.