Penny prices pinched by rising cost of metal

Penny prices pinched by rising cost of metal

www.cnn.com

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Further evidence that times are tough: It now costs more than a penny to make a penny. And the cost of a nickel is more than 7½ cents.
Surging prices for copper, zinc and nickel have some in Congress trying to bring back the steel-made pennies of World War II and maybe using steel for nickels, as well.

Copper and nickel prices have tripled since 2003 and the price of zinc has quadrupled, said Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Illinois, whose subcommittee oversees the U.S. Mint.

Keeping the coin content means "contributing to our national debt by almost as much as the coin is worth," Gutierrez said.

A penny, which consists of 97.5 percent zinc and 2.5 percent copper, cost 1.26 cents to make as of Tuesday. And a nickel -- 75 percent copper and the rest nickel -- cost 7.7 cents, based on current commodity prices, according to the Mint.

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I'm surprised this penny is still around. I have so many of these in my drawers and in water bottles. I'll be happy if I never see a penny or 99 cents again.

Side note: Would it be feasible to make pennys out of plastic, or wood?

www.cnn.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Ah the plasticred. I can see it. It makes cents. get it cents? oh nevermind.

The price of copper is so high that people I have know have gone and started to smelt down pennies in order to get the copper and trade it in.

Originally posted by whatukno
The price of copper is so high that people I have know have gone and started to smelt down pennies in order to get the copper and trade it in.

You must know some morons, a penny is made out of zinc, and only 2.5% copper, not enough to amount to a penny. So they would be loosing money.

lol

Originally posted by xstealth

Originally posted by whatukno
The price of copper is so high that people I have know have gone and started to smelt down pennies in order to get the copper and trade it in.

You must know some morons, a penny is made out of zinc, and only 2.5% copper, not enough to amount to a penny. So they would be loosing money.

lol

Perhaps so, but then why would the gov be going to steel coins in the future?

www.suntimes.com...

The fact is that metal (and everything else) is going up in price because the dollar is falling like a rock. The Fed is printing money like Carter makes pills, and so naturally the dollar is worth less. You aint seen nothing yet folks.

Thanks for the update OP.

I think this indicates a tipping point. Once the value of the metal in a coin exceeds its value, there isnt much more room to slip downhill.

That said, the silver dollar was withdraw due to the same reason and the currency did not crash as we are expecting it to now.

I think the eventual outcome will be that fuel will be prohibitively costly, and it will be more economical to actually burn the notes themselves (seen in Weimar Germany and Bolshevik USSR).

Inflation is moderate at the moment... it is beginning to ramp up slowly.

I wonder how long it is before hyper inflation sets in... better keep that wheelbarrow around to cart money into town if you plan on buying stuff!