Ford Motor Co.’s funding level for its U.S. pension plans declined in 2011, as declining interest rates boosted the value of plan liabilities.
At year-end 2011, the plans had a funding ratio of 80.7%, with $39.41 billion in assets and $48.82 billion in liabilities. That compares with a funding ratio of 85.7% at year-end 2010, when the U.S. plans had $39.96 billion in assets and $46.65 in billion in liabilities, the automaker disclosed Wednesday in its 10-K annual report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
As previously reported, Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford contributed $1.1 billion to its global pension plans in 2011 and expects to contribute $3.5 billion to its plans, including $2 billion to its U.S. pension plans, in 2012.
Ford said part of its long-term strategy to reduce risk posed by its pension plans is to shift more assets into fixed-income investments and away from equities.
Jerry Geisel is editor-at-large at Business Insurance, a sister publication of Pensions & Investments.
