"For far too long the United States has minted pennies, which literally cost us more than 2 cents," Trump wrote in a post to his Truth Social platform. "Let's rip the waste out of our great nation's budget, even if it's a penny at a time."

The president could promptly end the production of new pennies, but phasing out the coin would take time and mean changes at retail stores, economists said.

The one cent coin costs more to produce than its value and is nearly obsolete in retail. But it has its supporters.