The aggregate funded ratio for U.S. state pension plans as estimated by Wilshire Consulting increased by 5.4 percentage points to 71.6% as of March 31, up from 66.2% as of Dec. 31.
The quarterly change in funding resulted from a 9% increase in asset values partially offset by a 0.7% increase in liability values. The aggregate funded ratio is estimated to have increased 5.4 percentage points year-to-date and 0.4 percentage points for the trailing 12 months.
"The first quarter's rise in funded ratios was propelled by a 14.1% rebound for the Wilshire 5000, its largest quarterly gain in nearly a decade," stated Ned McGuire, managing director and a member of Wilshire Consulting's pension risk solutions group, in a news release. "The 9% increase in asset values during the first quarter reversed an 8.5% asset decline during the fourth quarter of 2018."
