Institution: U.S. corporate pension funding levels declined in June

Golden Ten Data reported on July 15 that Mercer Consulting stated that, due to the decline in US stocks, the estimated funding level of pension plans initiated by companies in the S&P 1500 Index fell by 1 percentage point in June to 109%. According to Mercer Consulting, as of the end of June, the estimated total surplus of these plans decreased by $700 million to $13.9 billion, down from $14.6 billion at the end of May. Matt McDaniel, a partner at Mercer Consulting, said that after the strong nonfarm payroll report in May, there was speculation that the Federal Reserve might raise interest rates later this year, which led to a market downturn in early June.