Funded status dips in February — BNY Mellon

The typical U.S. pension plan’s funded status fell 0.7 percentage points in February, according to BNY Mellon Asset Management. Assets of the typical moderate-risk pension plan benchmark portfolio declined 1.4%, while there was a 0.7% decrease in the average pension plan’s liabilities. The funded status of the typical U.S. pension plan declined 3.9 percentage points for the first two months of 2008. “Slowing growth prospects and rising inflation dampened the stock market once again,” Peter Austin, executive director of BNY Mellon Asset Management, said in a news release. “Expectations for further inflation also led to the rise of long-term interest rates, which was the primary reason for the slight decline in pension plan liabilities.”