Description: This article explores reasons for plan sponsors to consider lump-sum payouts. The author suggests for plan sponsors looking to reduce risk, the factors outlined in the article suggest that sponsors may benefit from considering risk-transfer opportunities much sooner than they may have anticipated.

Description: This article describes a new pension accounting standard for multinational companies and compares its provisions to those of the U.S. accounting standards. From Pension Section News, April 1998, Issue No. 36.

Description: This article reviews the proposed new accounting standards for pensions for governmental plans. From the Pension Section News, October 2011, Issue No. 75.

Description: This is the Reformatted Actuarial Standard of Practice No. 4: Measuring Pension Obligations. This standard is effective for measurements made as of December 3,1993 or later.

Description: Pension accounting standards continue to evolve across the globe with objectives, methods and assumptions varying, sometimes substantially, from one jurisdiction to the next. The presenters will compare the primary global pension accounting standards (US GAAP and IFRS), review recent developments and address whether or not the current standards adequately serve stakeholders such as plan participants, investors, management and regulators.

Description: This paper assesses the extent to which equity investors were fooled by pension accounting. Simulations show that a failure to differentiate between core and pension earnings induces large valuation errors for many firms, although this pension effect did not materially contribute to aggregate overvaluation before 2000. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice in Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.

Description: Discussion of competing theories for valuing public pension liabilities. Emphasis on revised Actuarial Standards of Practice that focus on the purpose of the measurement.

Description: Results and discussion of a survey of FAS 87 Assumptions employed for non- USA defined benefit plans as of 12/31/1996

Description: This web page contains a link to an Excel table, provided by the SOA Pension Section, with the month-end Moody's Long-Term Corporate Bond Yields - AA Bond Ratings - from January 1986 through June 2011. The Pension Section stopped updating the table after June 30, 2011.

Description: This paper takes the position that a truly transparent pension accounting expense could be developed to produce superior reporting that reflects experience as it occurs. Contributions could also be based on some asset and liability information about the pension plan, but with flexibility to allow for more controllable and stable contributions. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice in Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.