Pension consultants say that U.S. corporate pensions are at the highest funded level since the financial crisis, which could lead more companies to turn over to insurers the responsibility for paying retirees, the Wall Street Journal reported. Higher funding levels mean corporate sponsors get a better deal when transferring retiree obligations to insurers, so many firms are finding this to be the perfect time to transfer the risks associated with carrying pension plans. Defined-benefit pension plans of S&P 500 companies were in aggregate 91 percent funded at the end of September, according to research released Monday by Goldman Sachs Asset Management. That is the highest level since the end of 2007, when these plans were 108 percent funded, according to the report. Nearly one-quarter of the plans are now either fully funded or overfunded, the report said.
