Mint: January 2010

MINT's January 2010 totals are here:

1cent: 115.23 M
5cents: none
10cents: none
25cents: none
50cents: 3.5 M
1dollar: 99.68 M (including 25.2 M Native American dollars)
TOTAL COINS: 218.41 M
Average value per coin: $0.470

The month's mintages are split nearly evenly between cents and dollars, with what is probably the year's only half dollars minted on the side.

This is the sixth consecutive month without nickels, and the ninth consecutive month without dimes. Will the Mint resume nickel and dime production before 2010 ends? Maybe. If they don't, it will be the first year that either denometation was skipped since 1933.

No quarters this month, since the National Park series designs are still in development and the first coin, Hot Springs, won't launch until April. Expect quarters to be struck over the next few months.

As with 2009, the Mint's fascination with dollar coins continues. The elevated mintages of the Presidential series suggests that demand is being propped up by collector interest, despite the negative opinions of the series in the coin media.