U.S. Mint Production in November Tops 1 Billion Coins

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Pile of US coins
U.S. Mint production facilities in Philadelphia and Denver made more than 1 billion coins in November

U.S. coin production slowed in November but stayed atop the 1 billion mark for the seventh time this year, according to the latest manufacturing figures from the U.S. Mint.

The more than 1 billion coins minted for circulation included cents, nickels, dimes, and quarters and drove the amount on the year to over 12.5 billion coins.

In headline comparisons, coins produced in November logged declines of 25.4% from October and 23.4% from November 2017. Here’s how the month stacks up against others in the past year:

November 2017 to November 2018 Circulating Coin Production

Month Mintages Rank
November 2018 1,031.24 M 8
October 2018 1,382.18 M 3
September 2018 976.82 M 9
August 2018 831.56 M 12
July 2018 1,403.16 M 2
June 2018 1,198.34 M 6
May 2018 1,291.76 M 5
April 2018 878.74 M 11
March 2018 902.924 M 10
February 2018 1,066.51 M 7
January 2018 1,601.54 M 1
December 2017 762.86 M 13
November 2017 1,346.26 M 4

 

The Federal Reserve always orders more 1-cent coins than any other denomination even as it costs the U.S. Mint 1.82 cents to make and distribute each one. The Mint produced 639.6 million Lincoln cents in November, representing 62% of the circulating-quality coins produced for the month.

Month-Over-Month

In month-over month comparisons for coins used daily by Americans, production figures in November saw:

  • 22.1% fewer Lincoln cents,
  • 35.9% fewer Jefferson nickels,
  • 47.2% fewer Roosevelt dimes, and
  • 15.4% more America the Beautiful quarter dollars.

Native American $1 Coins and Kennedy half-dollars are no longer ordered by Federal Reserve Banks but they are still made in circulating-quality for coin collectors. In January, the U.S. Mint tends to make both coins to the expected amounts needed for the entire year.

Higher Kennedy Half-Dollar Mintages

In February, the U.S. Mint did strike 1.8 million more 2018-D Kennedy half-dollars. Then in March it made another 3.2 million from Denver and 1.2 million more for Philadelphia. No more have been pressed since then.

Mintages for the Kennedy half-dollar are at 5.4 million from Denver and 4.8 million from Philadelphia for a combined 10.2 million coins — the most since 2001 and more than doubling those made in 2017. Last year’s release ended with splits of 2.9 million from Denver and 1.8 million from Philadelphia for a combined 4.7 million coins.

Here’s a summary of all coins produced for circulation last month:

US Mint Circulating Coin Production in November 2018

Denomination Denver Philadelphia Total
Lincoln Cents 297,200,000 342,400,000 639,600,000
Jefferson Nickels 46,080,000 46,560,000 92,640,000
Roosevelt Dimes 58,000,000 96,000,000 154,000,000
ATB Quarters 72,600,000 72,400,000 145,000,000
Kennedy Half Dollars 0 0 0
Native American $1s 0 0 0
Total 473,880,000 557,360,000 1,031,240,000

 

U.S. Mint facilities in Denver and Philadelphia manufacture all of America’s coins for commerce. Last month, the Denver Mint made 473.88 million coins and the Philadelphia Mint made 557.36 million coins.

YTD Totals

Year-to-date figures at 6,014,840,000 coins from Denver and 6,549,934,000 coins from Philadelphia total to 12,564,774,000 coins, marking a 10.9% reduction from the 14,096,500,000 coins minted through the same time last year.

This next table lists 2018 coin production totals by denomination and by U.S. Mint production facility:

YTD 2018 Circulating Coin Production by Denomination

1 ¢ 5 ¢ 10 ¢ 25 ¢ 50 ¢ N.A. $1 Total:
Denver 3581.M 601.44M 973.5M 851.4M 5.4M 2.1M 6014.84M
Philadelphia 3897.2M 603.12M 1152.5M 890.914M 4.8M 1.4M 6549.934M
Total 7478.2M 1204.56M 2126M 1742.314M 10.2M 3.5M 12564.774M

 

The 2018 monthly average of more than 1.14 billion coins tracks over 12 months to about 13.7 billion coins. In 2017, the U.S. Mint produced over 14.8 billion coins for circulation — the third quickest for a year since 2001, after the more than 16 billion coins were made in 2016 and the over 17 billion coins were made in 2015.

Mintages by Unique Design

The U.S. Mint released seven 2018-dated coins with one-year-only designs. They include the:

Mintages for the 2018 Native American dollars are 2.1 million from Denver and 1.4 million from Philadelphia for a combined 3.5 million coins. Last year’s release ended with splits of 1.54 million from Denver and 1.82 million from Philadelphia for 3.36 million coins.

This last table offers a breakdown of this year’s mintages by coin design:

2018 Circulating Coin Production by Design

  Denver Philadelphia Total
Lincoln Cents 3,581,000,000 3,897,200,000 7,478,200,000
Jefferson Nickels 601,440,000 603,120,000 1,204,560,000
Roosevelt Dimes 973,500,000 1,152,500,000 2,126,000,000
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore Quarter (MI) 182,600,000 186,714,000 369,314,000
Apostle Islands National Lakeshore Quarter (WI) 213,400,000 223,200,000 436,600,000
Voyageurs National Park Quarter (MN) 197,800,000 237,400,000 435,200,000
Cumberland Island National Seashore Quarter (GA) 151,600,000 138,000,000 289,600,000
Block Island National Wildlife Refuge Quarter (RI) 0 0 0
Kennedy Half-Dollars 5,400,000 4,800,000 10,200,000
Native American $1 Coins 2,100,000 1,400,000 3,500,000
Total 5,908,840,000 6,444,334,000 12,353,174,000

 

Production figures for November include 211.6 million quarters that have yet to be officially assigned to a design. These are a good portion of Block Island quarters that started circulating Nov. 13.

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