Trump ordered a halt to the production of one-cent coins, saying production costs were higher than face value

U.S. President Donald Trump said he has directed his Treasury secretary to stop minting one-cent coins because the cost of producing them has exceeded face value.

In a post on the Truth Social platform, Trump said he had asked his Treasury secretary to stop producing one-cent coins featuring Abraham Lincoln as part of efforts to cut budget waste.

"The United States has been minting one-cent coins for a long time, and each penny actually costs more than two cents to make, what a waste!" he said.

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by Musk, the world's richest man, noted in January that each one-cent coin costs more than three cents to produce. In 2023, the cost of producing a one-cent coin will be about $179 million.

For decades, the U.S. government has tried many times to eliminate pennies. In its 2024 annual report, the Mint noted that the cost of producing and distributing a penny is about 3.7 cents, up more than 20 percent from the previous year. Part of the cost increase is due to higher prices for metals such as zinc and copper.