Sheez I love that they are cutting costs but hate that they don't see that it's the spending and creating the fiat in the first place that makes the metals "cost too much" lol
That's only the start of the future I was reading in the Chicago Tribune how Switzerland and another country are already experimenting with eliminating fiat currency altogether. Only credit/debit cards, wire and bank transfers and travelers checks are honored you can't even find an ATM and if you do they won't take your money. I don't have any but for those who did buy in my question is what will happen to the price of copper rounds and bars now that the biggest user of copper (that's most of the cost in u.s. coins) is now not needing it? Supply goes up demand went WAY down.
Got to give them some credit though, somehow they've created worthless paper money and coinage but still get the demand to make it worth more than it really is with collectors like yourself.
I'm not sure what this article has to do with Paper Money or why this thread was put in this forum because nothing in the article indicated the paper they are talking about was linked to elimination of nor a forthcoming reduction in printed paper currency. Particularly with the dollar coin program on-hold/cancelled, the need (demand) for paper currency, particularly $1 notes remains high. There are more $1 notes printed than anything else. Now with rising costs, higher denomination notes are also getting more use as ATMs are starting to spit out $50s and $100s more often. Encouraging electronic communication is the same thing as supporting and continuing to encourage the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980. With the advent of electronic tax filing since then, and more households able to do so securely, of course it makes sense to have people filing electronically. There are far fewer stacks of tax forms available in Post Offices than there used to be because of such paper reduction efforts. The various budget plans and other documents printed and bound in enormouse quantities by the WH and Congress also ought to go digital rather than printing so many paper copies for electred officials, staffers, journalist and the public. Last time I checked the portraits on my notes didn't talk to me the way paper forms are used to communicate to various departments of government. Of all the paper likely to be cut back on, currency paper will be one of the last to be threatened in such reduction efforts so long as the currency remains secure (from counterfeiting) and in demand. The demand for US currency goes beyond domestic needs. US currency has global demand fulfilling its role as a reserve currency. I don't even have concerns over whether the US will convert to polymer notes from paper currency. I would welcome and collect polymer notes, but when looking at cost savings to fo with a polymer printing switch-over and education program to initiate the public into using them would defeat cost savings. The glimpse of the future I perceive is that paper currency will be here for many, many more years to come. Of course change is inevitable but as we know with bureaucracy, change tends to come about gradually. Even if small denomination coins are eliminated in the near future, I'm sure our English language will continue to hold onto popular phrases like, "Don't nickel and dime me." or "That's my two cents." This is after all, my2¢ on this thread and the WSJ blog article. :smile
According to the WSJ article link above the US Mint used 16,365 tons of copper last Fiscal Year. The Copper Development Association reports a total US production of 2.5 million tons annually. So my calculator tells me that the US Mint used .655% of the total US Production. Then there are the two other major producers Peru and Chile. I'd say the price of copper products will not be materially affected if the US Mint stopped using copper in production all US coinage let alone just cents and nickels.
