Saturday, May 5, 2012

Canada Ditches the Penny

The last penny minted in Canada since its introduction in 1858 is on its way to the country's currency museum in Ottawa.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty pushed the button just after 11 a.m. ion Friday at the Royal Canadian Mint in Winnipeg.

Flaherty said the Canadian penny is going out of circulation because the "fine balance" of production costs and value couldn't be maintained.

Bottom line: Price inflation in Canada has made it too expensive to produce the coin. The metal used to make a penny costs much more than one Canadian cent. The cost to produce a Canadian penny was most recently 1.6 Canadian cents.

Tuck away your U.S. nickels they along with the U.S. penny will be next.

2 comments:

  1. Royal canadian mint also diluted loonie and toonie coins with cheap metals this year, alerging it can save 16 million. On the other hand, it will cost retailers 40 million to upgrade their equipment. What an expensice saving!

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  2. The excuse being used is penny production is too expensive, which may be true, however, even if production was below face value, the real reason it is being ditched is decline in purchasing power. So now a nickel-dime-quarter is 'the new penny' and soon it will be 'the dollar.'

    Oh, but Sweden, Canada and every other country are leading their flock to 'digital money' which will really lower production costs (will 'digital' pennies be brought back?). And it will be so easy to modify everything to suit. (See Sweden is moving to a cashless economy http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57399610/Sweden-moving-towards-cashless-economy/ and Canada Mint Chip digital currency challenge (winner paid $50,000 in Gold, go figure) http://mintchipchallenge.com/details/about

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