Nissan 2004 Annual Report Download - page 62

Nissan Annual Report 2003
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9. RETIREMENT BENEFIT PLANS
The Company and its domestic consolidated subsidiaries have defined benefit plans, i.e., welfare pension fund plans (WPFP), tax-qualified
pension plans and lump-sum payment plans, covering substantially all employees who are entitled to lump-sum or annuity payments, the
amounts of which are determined by reference to their basic rates of pay, length of service, and the conditions under which termination
occurs. Certain foreign consolidated subsidiaries have defined benefit and contribution plans.
The following table sets forth the funded and accrued status of the plans, and the amounts recognized in the consolidated balance sheets
as of March 31, 2004 and 2003 for the Company’s and the consolidated subsidiaries’ defined benefit plans:
Thousands of
Millions of yen U.S. dollars
2003 2002 2003
As of Mar. 31, 2004 Mar. 31, 2003 Mar. 31, 2004
Retirement benefit obligation.................................................................................................. ¥(1,041,483) ¥(1,135,273) $(9,825,311)
Plan assets at fair value............................................................................................................ 377,169 359,922 3,558,198
Unfunded retirement benefit obligation................................................................................ (664,314) (775,351) (6,267,113)
Unrecognized net retirement benefit obligation at transition........................................... 131,666 179,611 1,242,132
Unrecognized actuarial gain or loss...................................................................................... 152,867 231,637 1,442,141
Unrecognized prior service cost ............................................................................................ (61,833) (69,134) (583,330)
Net retirement benefit obligation ........................................................................................... (441,614) (433,237) (4,166,170)
Prepaid pension cost................................................................................................................ 652 29 6,151
Accrued retirement benefits.................................................................................................... ¥ (442,266) ¥(433,266) $(4,172,321)
The substitutional portion of the benefits under the WPFP has been included in the amounts shown in the above table.
The Company received approval from the Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare (“MHLW”) in the year ended March 31, 2003 with respect
to its application for exemption from the obligation for benefits related to future employee services under the substitutional portion of the
WPFP. Certain domestic consolidated subsidiaries received the same approval from MHLW during the year ended March 31, 2004. In accor-
dance with the transitional provision stipulated in “Practical Guidelines for Accounting for Retirement Benefits,” the Company and the domes-
tic consolidated subsidiaries accounted for the separation of the substitutional portion of the benefit obligation from the corporate portion of
the benefit obligation under their WPFPs as of the dates of approval for their exemption assuming that the transfer to the Japanese govern-
ment of the substitutional portion of the benefit obligation and related pension plan assets had been completed as of those dates. As a result,
the Company recognized a loss of ¥30,945 million for the year ended March 31, 2003 and the domestic consolidated subsidiaries recog-
nized an aggregate gain of ¥3,669 million ($34,613 thousand) and an aggregate loss of ¥1,587 million ($14,972 thousand) for the year
ended March 31, 2004. The pension assets to be transferred were calculated at ¥35,770 million ($337,453 thousand) for the domestic con-
solidated subsidiaries at March 31, 2004 and ¥241,203 million for the Company at March 31, 2003.