Things, Ideas & People . . .

As of last week, the U.S. is no longer minting pennies, saving taxpayers approximately $56 million. Pre-1982 pennies are made of 95% copper and are worth approximately 2 to 3 cents. After 1982, the composition is mostly zinc—over 97%—with a thin copper coating. The cost to mint a penny in 2025 was about 3.69 to 4 cents, which we believe also includes packaging, distributing, and other overhead.

The U.S. nickel, on the other hand, costs about 11 cents in materials and labor and another 3 cents or so to distribute.

The nickel is the only U.S. coin where the metal is worth more than the face value, at about 6 cents. It is 25% nickel and 75% c...