The funded status of employer-sponsored pension plans in the United States and Canada has dipped during the first nine months of 2012, while funding of plans in the United Kingdom rose slightly and those in the Netherlands plunged, according to a Mercer L.L.C. analysis released Oct. 30.
In the United States, plans sponsored by employers in the S&P 1500 were on average 73 percent funded as of Sept. 30, down from 75 percent as of Dec. 31, while funding for plans sponsored by Canadian employers in the S&P/TSX fell to 83 percent, down from 87 percent as of the end of 2011.
In the United Kingdom, plans sponsored by employers in the FTSE 350 were, on average, 92 percent funded as of Sept. 30, up from 89 percent as of Dec. 31, 2011.
On the other hand, fueled by a sharp drop in interest rates, which inflated the value of plan liabilities, plans sponsored by employers in the Netherlands listed in the AEX/AMX were on average 80 percent funded as of Sept. 30, compared to 96 percent as of Dec. 31, 2011.
Jerry Geisel writes for Business Insurance, a sister publication of Workforce Management. Comment below or email editors@workforce.com.
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