Linda Berstler Company sponsors a defined benefit pension plan. The corporation’s actuary provides the following information about the plan.

January 1, 2017 December 31, 2017

Defined benefit obligations \(2,500 \)3,300

Plan assets (fair value) 1,700 2,620

Discount rate 10%

Pension asset/liability 800 ?

Service cost for the year 2017 400

Contributions (funding in 2017) 700

Benefits paid in 2017 200

Instructions

(a) Compute the actual return on the plan assets in 2017.

(b) Compute the amount of other comprehensive income (G/L) as of December 31, 2017. (Assume the January 1, 2017, balance was zero.)

Short Answer

Expert verified

Answer

The actual return on the plan assets is$420.

The net pension liability loss for the company is$100.

Step by step solution

01

Step-by-Step SolutionStep 1: Definition of Pension Plan

A pension plan refers to a scheme in which an employer promises a specified payment to its employees in the form of regular payments or alump-sum at the time of their retirement.

02

Computation of actual return on plan assets

Particulars

Amounts ($)

Closing balance of plan assets

2,620

Less: Fund available after benefit paid (Working note)

(2,200)

Actual return on plan assets

$420

Working note:

Computation of fund available after benefit paid:

Particulars

Amounts ($)

Opening balance of the plan assets

1,700

Add: Contribution

700

Total fund available

2,400

Less: Benefit paid

(200)

Fund available after benefit paid

2,200

03

Computation of other comprehensive income

Particulars

Amounts ($)

Closing projected benefit obligation

3,300

Add: Benefit

200

Less: Opening projected benefit obligation

(2,500)

Less: Interest cost on beginning projected obligation (2,500*10%)

(250)

Less: Service cost

(400)

Liability gain or loss (A)

350

Closing value of plan assets

2,620

Add: Benefits

200

Less: Opening value of plan assets

(1,700)

Less: Contribution

(700)

Less: Expected return on plan assets (1700*10%)

(170)

Unexpected return on plan assets (B)

250

Net pension liability loss (A-B)

(100)

Unlock Step-by-Step Solutions & Ace Your Exams!

  • Full Textbook Solutions

    Get detailed explanations and key concepts

  • Unlimited Al creation

    Al flashcards, explanations, exams and more...

  • Ads-free access

    To over 500 millions flashcards

  • Money-back guarantee

    We refund you if you fail your exam.

Over 30 million students worldwide already upgrade their learning with Vaia!

One App. One Place for Learning.

All the tools & learning materials you need for study success - in one app.

Get started for free

Most popular questions from this chapter

Erickson Company sponsors a defined benefit pension plan. The corporation’s actuary provides the following information about the plan. January 1, December 31, 2017 2017 Vested benefit obligation \(1,500 \)1,900 Accumulated benefit obligation 1,900 2,730 Projected benefit obligation 2,500 3,300 Plan assets (fair value) 1,700 2,620 Settlement rate and expected rate of return 10% Pension asset/liability 800 ? Service cost for the year 2017 400 Contributions (funding in 2017) 700 Benefits paid in 2017 200 Instructions (a) Compute the actual return on the plan assets in 2017. (b) Compute the amount of the other comprehensive income (G/L) as of December 31, 2017. (Assume the January 1, 2017, balance was zero.) (c) Compute the amount of net gain or loss amortization for 2017 (corridor approach). (d) Compute pension expense for 2017.

What is service cost, and what is the basis of its measurement?

Hanson Corp. sponsors a defined benefit pension plan for its employees. On January 1, 2017, the following balances related to this plan. Plan assets (market-related value) \(520,000 Projected benefi t obligation 700,000 Pension asset/liability 180,000 Cr. Prior service cost 81,000 Net gain or loss (debit) 91,000 As a result of the operation of the plan during 2017, the actuary provided the following additional data for 2017. Service cost \)108,000 Settlement rate, 9%; expected return rate, 10% Actual return on plan assets 48,000 Amortization of prior service cost 25,000 Contributions 133,000 Benefits paid retirees 85,000 Average remaining service life of active employees 10 years

Instructions Using the preceding data, compute pension expense for Hanson Corp. for the year 2017 by preparing a pension worksheet that shows the journal entry for pension expense. Use the market-related asset value to compute the expected return and for corridor amortization.

At the end of the current period, Agler Inc. had a projected benefit obligation of \(400,000 and pension plan assets (at fair value) of \)350,000. What are the accounts and amounts that will be reported on the company’s balance sheet as pension assets or pension liabilities?

Differentiate between “accounting for the employer” and “accounting for the pension fund.”

See all solutions

Recommended explanations on Business Studies Textbooks

View all explanations

What do you think about this solution?

We value your feedback to improve our textbook solutions.

Study anywhere. Anytime. Across all devices.

Sign-up for free