Pension plan funding slumps in June

Hammered by a fall in interest rates, which boosted the value of plan liabilities, the funded status of very large pension plans sponsored by public companies slumped in June, according to a Milliman Inc. survey released Friday.

Defined benefit plans offered by U.S. employers with the 100 largest pension programs were an average of 75.7% funded as of June 30, down from 77.5% funded as of May 31.

At the end of June, the plans had $1.393 trillion in assets and $1.839 trillion in liabilities, resulting in a funding deficit of about $446.76 billion, an increase of about $46 billion compared with the end of May and a whopping $195 billion rise from a year ago, when the plans had an aggregate funding shortfall of about $252 billion.