President Donald Trump says he has directed the Treasury Department to stop minting new pennies, citing the rising cost of producing the one-cent coin. “For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents.

President Trump said that the coins cost more to produce than their face value. President Trump said on Sunday night that he had ordered the Treasury secretary to stop producing new pennies, a move that he said would help reduce unnecessary government spending.