Treasury Department Penny Production Halt

The Treasury Department is halting its production of new pennies.

The department said Thursday it made its final order of blank pennies this month as its moves to end production of the one-cent coin.

According to the 2024 annual report from the Mint, the cost of making the penny increased 20-percent and the Treasury Department says halting new penny production could lead to "immediate annual savings of 56-million-dollars in reduced material costs."

There are more than 114 billion pennies currently in circulation, however, demand for the penny has drastically decreased as Americans increasingly shift their payment habits to cards or digital services like Apple Pay.

(Photo Illustration by Tim Boyle/Getty Images)