The value of pensions

UK companies with defined benefit pension plans could do with some good news. SEI Investments thinks it has some. SEI says that the current accounting standard on pensions is too conservative. It recommends using a higher discount rate for pension liabilities. That would wipe out most of the reported deficits. SEI does not like the way that FRS17, the new standard, requires all companies to use the interest rate on double-A rated bonds as the discount rate for their pension obligations. They ar...