It’s the End of an Era:

Yesterday, the last ever U.S. PENNY was minted in Philadelphia (the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia has been making pennies since 1793). One of the reasons they decided to stop minting pennies (probably the biggest reason), according to the U.S. Mint, each penny actually costs 3.7 cents to make. Billions of pennies are still in circulation and will remain legal tender, but new ones will no longer be made. So, how could this affect us? Some businesses are already rounding receipts to the nearest five cents (not necessarily rounding UP, the nearest five cents could be up or down), while others are requiring exact change. Even if prices aren’t rounded up, there are other potential drawbacks. It’s another step pushing us toward a cashless society, which not everyone is in favor of. Also, experts say this would cause us to need more NICKELS . . . which we’re also losing money on. According to the Mint, each nickel costs 13.8 cents to make.