5-cent nickels contain 75% copper and 25% nickel. 1-cent pennies contain 2.5% copper with the remaining zinc. The price of these metals have each gone up significantly and for over a year now, their melt value has been worth more than their real value. Or, more to the point, it costs the U.S. government more to make the penny and nickel than what they’re worth.
Copper used to be the problem step-child of metals. It was either not thought about or considered in a negative context, like the mental picture of paying for the repair of copper piping underneath the sink.
For some, copper has turned to gold. And better, it wasn’t purchased first - it just found its way onto some junk pile in the garage or back yard and it magically turned into money.
Today, if you have a pile of it sitting around, you can gather it up and make some decent bucks at $2.92 per pound. Even better, a scrap metal entrepreneur is likely to ask and do the work for you just to get a percentage of the return.
A 7-month low hit copper yesterday in New York futures trading. The fall was driven by concerns of softer import data from China.
As interesting as the up trend has been, a continue decline could well be appreciated. It would at least subdue some of the negativity its rise has made.
The ban on melting pennies and its copper and the new legislation to remove it is one thing. That should sort itself out.
But the daily and nightly copper news stories are something else. Recycling discarded or unused copper is a good story. However, the stream of scavengers who steal copper are absolutely mind-boggling.
Coin toning can intrinsically increase or decrease the value of coins. Natural coin toning can be quite beautiful. It can also be outrageously ugly.
And because beauty is often times in the eye of the beholder, placing a value on a coin due to its toning can present problems.
Should you pay extra or less for toned coins? After all, a coin that’s toned is going through a form of corrosion, right?
During just the first half of this year, nearly 5.4 billion pennies and almost 880 million nickels were minted. That’s a lot of change. But did you know it actually costs more to make a penny or nickel than what they’re worth?
Craziness right? Well, unfortunately, it’s the truth. Since the fourth quarter of last year, steep metal prices pushed the cost of manufacturing the penny and nickel above their face value.
The biggest culprit is the price of copper, zinc and nickel. According to United States Mint specifications, 5-cent nickels contain 75% copper and 25% nickel while 1-cent pennies contain 2.5% copper with the remaining zinc. The price of these metals have each gone up significantly since early last year.
And what’s the result? The manufacturing cost of the penny has fluctuated between ~1.5-1.7 cents and the nickel between ~8-10 cents. We’re losing money! And suddenly, thoughts of melting pennies and nickels for their metallic value start to wonder into one’s mind…
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