The aggregate funding ratio for U.S. state pension plans increased by 0.4 percentage points to 73.4% during the third quarter, according to Wilshire Consulting.
The quarterly change in funding resulted from a 1.3% increase in asset values partially offset by a 0.7% increase in liability values. Wilshire estimated that the aggregate funding ratio increased 7.2 percentage points year-to-date and 0.6 percentage points for the trailing 12 months.
"The third quarter's rise in funded ratios was driven by positive returns for most asset classes," said Ned McGuire, managing director and a member of the investment management and research group of Wilshire Consulting, in a news release. "The 1.3% increase in asset values during this quarter is the third consecutive quarterly asset increase during 2019."
