Vanishing act: Bond yield effects on pension deficits

It is well known that many companies have defined benefit pension schemes - some huge, even though most are now closed to new members. As has been well-documented over many years, lots have been underfunded, with large deficits requiring seemingly endless top-up payments from the sponsoring companies. However, today those deficits have largely vanished. UK pension deficits The Pension Protection Fund tracks more than 5,000 defined benefit pension schemes, producing a monthly index giving their estimated funding position. Historically, most pension schemes have been in deficit, with ...