Canadian defined benefit pension plans administered by Aon Hewitt had a median funded status of 96% as of June 26, up 0.6 percentage points from March 31 and up 19 percentage points from the end of the second quarter 2013.
About 37% of the 275 public and corporate plans in Canada surveyed were more than fully funded as of June 26, compared with 36% at the end of the second quarter and 5% a year earlier.
The median funded status as of June 26 was the highest since the 99% median in the third quarter of 2007.
William da Silva, senior partner, retirement practice at Aon Hewitt, said in a news release that the slight increase in second-quarter funded status is the result of contributions made by plan sponsors. He said pension plans with risk management strategies ended the quarter two to three percentage points better funded than those plans with a more traditional approach to managing risk.
The pension funds surveyed had an average return of 3.3% for the latest quarter and 7.8% year-to-date June 26.
