Melt Your Pennies For Profit

Apparently, the copper contained in US pennies and nickles is now worth more than the face value of the coin.

So it could be a profitable enterprise to cash in your life savings into pennies, melt it down and flog off the metal to scrap merchants in China.

Yeah good idea!! Except it could land you in the slammer.

Effective today, the U.S. Mint has implemented an interim rule that makes it illegal to melt nickels and pennies, or to export them in mass quantities.

With the soaring price of copper, a melted-down penny or nickel is now worth more than it would be in its regular state at face value.

Officials at the Mint say in recent months they have received numerous inquiries into whether or not it is illegal to melt coins.

"We are taking this action because the Nation needs its coinage for commerce," said U.S. Mint Director Edmund Moy in a statement.

The best ideas are always illegal :(

Meanwhile on the futures, Near month copper is hanging doggedly onto the ~$3 mark. Astonishingly, my pictoral hypothesis from the 7th Dec is playing out pretty close to the mark and now only need a break of support, to attain my copper guru stripes.