1-yen coins bearing this year's date are continuously pouring out.
This video, released by the Japan Mint, garnered nearly 14 million views in less than a week.
As demand decreased, 1-yen coins had only been minted at around 500,000 per year for collectors over the past decade, but the Mint announced it is mass-producing 1-yen coins for the first time in 11 years.
The total number of 1-yen coins to be minted this year is 132 million.
Questions have been raised on social media as to why Japan is mass-producing 1-yen coins at a time when the country is shifting toward a cashless society.
When payment methods were observed for 30 minutes in front of a supermarket self-checkout counter, cash payments were overwhelming, with 68 people using cash and 14 using non-cash payments.
This suggests that cash payments help people save money in an era of high inflation.
[Consumer: Because you can see it with your eyes, it is easy to know how much you have left. When you use credit cards, there are times when more money comes out later than you expected.]
[Store Manager: In terms of the ratio, cash payments account for about 3 to 7. There are many people who stick to cash so they don't end up spending more.]
The fact that cash payments never experience payment service disruptions was also cited as an advantage.
[Consumer: There were days when I couldn't use PayPay (QR code payment). I was at a pub, but because I had cash, I was able to pay.]
Behind the mass production of 1-yen coins is also the demand from small business owners.
[Restaurant Operator: Until now, we supported QR code payments like PayPay, but the commissions were all too high.]
After much deliberation, this restaurant decided to discontinue QR code payment methods and provide only cash and credit card payments.
[Restaurant Operator: 70% are cash-paying customers and 30% are credit card-paying customers. Cash payments are increasing even more.]
As cash payments increase, the 1-yen coins that stores need to have on hand also increase.
In the era of high inflation, the presence of the 1-yen coin is rising once again.
(Video by: Moon Hyun-jin)
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