HispanicBusiness

Washington (dpa) - It was an idea that seemed too good to be true, and advocates of minting a 1-trillion-dollar coin to solve the US debt ceiling debate will have to look elsewhere for a solution after the Treasury nixed the plan.

The suggestion of the massive platinum coin had captured the imagination of many and received extensive media attention in recent weeks as a showdown with Congress over raising the nation's debt ceiling looms.

It would have seen the government mint the coin, deposit it at the Federal Reserve and use it as currency to pay the bills if Congress refused to raise the debt limit in opposition to President Barack Obama.

"Neither the Treasury Department nor the Federal Reserve believes that the law can or should be used to facilitate the production of platinum coins for the purpose of avoiding an increase in the debt limit," Treasury spokesman Anthony Coley told The Wall Street Journal Saturday.

The debt limit must be raised beyond the current 16.4 trillion dollars by mid-February to continue financing the 1-trillion-dollar annual deficit, the Congressional Budget Office said.

Republicans in Congress have threatened to tie any increase in the debt ceiling to demands for spending cuts.