From a collecting perspective, what does everyone think would happen to the prices of cents? Do you think prices would increase as collectors went into panic mode and began buying everything in sight? Or do you think we would realize that there are billions of cents out there and the prices would remain about the same? And if they are removed from circulation, what would they do with the coins? As people spend their final cents, would banks just start shipping them back to the mint to be destroyed? That would be a real shame, can you imagine all of beautiful/rare coins that would be destroyed? :crying: -LTB
I think they would be shipped back and melted/destroyed. I am sure they could get a huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuge amount of copper if they brought in all the pennies. I think that people would hoard them too. I know I would hoard them hehe!
I agree. From 56 on many cents were minted in the billions per year. It would take years for them to be worth anything.
I never thought about the possibility of recalling the cents. I would assume they would stay in circulation, but if they did start melting the cents down, that would cuase quite a stir.
I doubt they would go to the expense of collecting them and melting them. They'd just stop making them. If they did demonitorize them, which they never did before, then I supposed they'd have to take them back, but there are still so many it wouldn't matter. Ruben
They stopped the 2 cent, 3 cent, 20 cent coins and no big thing. No recall, no problems at least at that time. Although they really didn't stop the half dollar, nothing is being made for circulation and the ones in circulation are vanishing even now. Remember those large Dollar coins? Also, gone. Same with $1,000 dollar bills and no one misses them do they??????? And I use to have so many.
All they would have to do is stop making cents and lift the ban on melting them. No need to recall them or demonitize them. After a number of years, they would start to become scarce and businesses would adjust their prices and check-out policies accordingly. Banks would have to find a way to cash a check for $1.78. It probably wouldn't be a big deal to round up or down if needed. Senior citizens would fight to the death to round up. Kids could be rounded down and wouldn't even notice because they can't count. So it would all even out.
Even if Richard Prior was able to get all the half cents from the cumputer system and have them put in his bank account, he still might not have enough money to by a pair of Nikes Ruben
Collectible cent values would climb for a couple years before becoming "stale" and drifting lower indefinitely. The climb could be pretty spectacular especially for the memorials which have never been widely collected. At the same time cents from circulation would disappear and it would help the other denominations especially nickels and states coins probably. This would be a "grass roots" demand that wouldn't show up in prices for many years. The government would recall the cents but very few would be redeemed. They'd probably retrieve fewer than 20 billion of the nearly 500 billion minted and about 85% would be zinc. Most of the 500 billion are already destroyed but about 150 would survive with about half copper and half zinc. Many of the coppers would be wheaties.
