In April 2012, the Canadian government will begin phasing out the Canadian penny. It was left out of the latest budget because it just didn’t make financial sense to keep it going.
“The penny is a currency without any currency”
The Canadian penny now costs Canada 1.6 cents to produce. The government says it loses $11 million each year making and distributing pennies.
How Canada actually goes about doing away with its own penny may prove to be a model for the U.S.
In April, Canada will mint its final penny, and a few months later, it will halt all distribution of pennies to the country’s financial institutions as it attempts to withdraw them from circulation.
As for how Canadian businesses and consumers deal with a world without pennies, that’s largely up to them. The government is suggesting that they either round up or down to the nearest five cents. For those who use debit or credit cards, prices will still be charged to the cent.
via Moneyland
Oh and by the way:
The U.S. penny costs an incredible 2.4 cents to make (and the nickel, by the way, costs 11.2 cents).
Thx to Scott Beale – Photo via Kasia
