United States Mint coin production in November retreated from the previous month and from a year earlier but the month lifted the total for this year to over 12.4 billion coins, the most since 2007.
U.S. Mint figures published Tuesday, Dec. 9, show facilities in Philadelphia and Denver struck 958,780,000 in cents, nickels and dimes for a 18% decline from the previous month and a 3.3% drop from a year ago. Here’s how the month stacks up against others over the past year:
2013 – 2014 November Coin Production Figures
| Month | Mintages | Rank |
| November 2014 | 958.78 M | 10 |
| October 2014 | 1,168.78 M | 5 |
| September 2014 | 1,004.24 M | 8 |
| August 2014 | 913.38 M | 12 |
| July 2014 | 1,331.34 M | 2 |
| June 2014 | 1,279.82 M | 4 |
| May 2014 | 1,326.80 M | 3 |
| April 2014 | 1,007.96 M | 7 |
| March 2014 | 1,025.40 M | 6 |
| February 2014 | 939.04 M | 11 |
| January 2014 | 1,449.38 M | 1 |
| December 2013 | 285.96 M | 13 |
| November 2013 | 991.14 M | 9 |
As an always provided sidebar in our monthly coin production articles, the U.S. Mint does not decide how many coins to make for circulation. It’s the Federal Reserve that orders them based on usage trends and requests from financial institutions around the country.
Lincoln cents always top coin production figures even as it takes about 1.8 cents to strike and distribute each one. The U.S. Mint made 661.6 million pennies in November which accounts for 69% of the circulating coins produced for the month. That’s well higher than most months when the mark is closer to 60%.
For coins used every day by Americans and in month-over-month comparisons, November saw:
- 6.1% fewer Lincoln cents,
- 2.3% fewer Jefferson nickels, and
- 2% fewer Roosevelt dimes
No quarters were minted last month. In fact, the Mint reduced the previous quarter total from the Philadelphia Mint by 2.8 million.
Presidential $1 Coins, Native American $1 Coins and Kennedy half-dollars are no longer ordered by Federal Reserve Banks and placed into circulation but the U.S. Mint still makes them for coin collectors. In January, the agency produced 2014 Native American $1 Coins and 2014 Kennedy half-dollars to the expected amounts needed for the year. Presidential $1 Coins were last minted in May with enough, likely, to support collector demand for all four 2014 designs.
Facilities in Denver and Philadelphia manufacture all U.S. circulating coinage for commerce. In November, the Denver Mint made 479.92 million coins and the Philadelphia Mint produced 478.86 million coins. Here’s a breakdown of the circulating-quality coins manufactured last month:
US Mint Circulating Coin Production in November 2014
| Denomination | Denver | Philadelphia | Total |
| Lincoln Cents | 333,600,000 | 328,000,000 | 661,600,000 |
| Jefferson Nickels | 46,320,000 | 56,160,000 | 102,480,000 |
| Roosevelt Dimes | 100,000,000 | 97,500,000 | 197,500,000 |
| 2013 ATB Quarters | 0 | -2,800,000 | -2,800,000 |
| Kennedy Half Dollars | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Native American $1s | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Presidential Dollars | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 479,920,000 | 478,860,000 | 958,780,000 |
In the January through November period, circulating coin production totaled 6,369,380,000 in Denver and 6,035,540,000 in Philadelphia. The two production facilities combined for 12,404,920,000 circulating-quality coins, which is a 6.8% increase over the 11,620,980,000 struck through the first eleven months of 2013. More significant for the year already, the amount is the most since 14,440,650,000 coins were made in 2007.
This next table lists 2014 coin production totals by denomination and by U.S. Mint facility:
YTD 2014 Circulating Coin Production by Denomination
| 1 ¢ | 5 ¢ | 10 ¢ | 25 ¢ | 50 ¢ | N.A. $1 | Pres $1 | Total: | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | 3832.4M | 570.72M | 1080.5M | 862.8M | 2.1M | 5.6M | 15.26M | 6369.38M |
| Philadelphia | 3677.6M | 592.08M | 1023M | 717.4M | 2.5M | 3.08M | 19.88M | 6035.54M |
| Total | 7510M | 1162.8M | 2103.5M | 1580.2M | 4.6M | 8.68M | 35.14M | 12404.92M |
This year’s monthly average of over 1.1 billion coins positions 2014 for an annual total that tops 13.5 billion coins. Last year’s total reached just over 11.9 billion coins.
Everglades National Park Quarter Mintages
Everglades National Park Quarters for Florida, the last of the five quarter designs for 2014 and the 25th issued America the Beautiful Quarter, entered circulation beginning on Nov. 3. The latest U.S. Mint data shows mintages of the Everglades quarter at 300 million with splits of 142.4 million from Denver and 157.6 million from Philadelphia. The amount is the sixth highest mintage of America the Beautiful Quarters, falling behind:
- 2013 Mount Rushmore Quarters at 504.2 million
- 2014 Arches National Park Quarters at 465.6 million
- 2014 Great Sands Dunes Quarters at 331.4 million
- 2014 Shenandoah National Park Quarters at 310.6 million
- 2012 Denali National Park Quarters at 302 million
The following table offers a breakdown of 2014 mintages by coin designs:
2014 Circulating Coin Production / Mintages by Coin Design
| Denver | Philadelphia | 2014 Total | |
| Lincoln Cents | 3,832,400,000 | 3,677,600,000 | 7,510,000,000 |
| Jefferson Nickels | 570,720,000 | 592,080,000 | 1,162,800,000 |
| Roosevelt Dimes | 1,080,500,000 | 1,023,000,000 | 2,103,500,000 |
| Great Smoky Mountains Quarter | 99,400,000 | 73,200,000 | 172,600,000 |
| Shenandoah National Park Quarter | 197,800,000 | 112,800,000 | 310,600,000 |
| Arches National Park Quarter | 251,400,000 | 214,200,000 | 465,600,000 |
| Great Sand Dunes Quarter | 171,800,000 | 159,600,000 | 331,400,000 |
| Everglades National Park Quarter | 142,400,000 | 157,601,200 | 300,001,200 |
| Kennedy Half Dollars | 2,100,000 | 2,500,000 | 4,600,000 |
| Native American $1 | 5,600,000 | 3,080,000 | 8,680,000 |
| Warren G. Harding $1 | 3,780,000 | 6,160,000 | 9,940,000 |
| Calvin Coolidge $1 | 3,780,000 | 4,480,000 | 8,260,000 |
| Herbert Hoover $1 | 3,780,000 | 4,480,000 | 8,260,000 |
| Franklin D. Roosevelt $1 | 3,920,000 | 4,760,000 | 8,680,000 |
| Total | 6,369,380,000 | 6,035,541,200 | 12,404,921,200 |
Coin production figures in this coin news article are based on data aggregated from the U.S. Mint website at: http://www.usmint.gov/about_the_mint/?action=coin_production.
