Unilever 2003 Annual Report Download - page 108

Unilever Annual Report & Accounts and Form 20-F 2003 105
Notes to the consolidated accounts
Unilever Group
17 Pensions and similar obligations continued
Funded status
The funded status of the plans, reconciled to the amount reported in the statement of financial position is as follows:
€ million € million € million € million
Other post- Other post-
Pension Pension employment employment
plans plans benefit plans benefit plans
2003 2002 2003 2002
Fair value of plan assets 12 850 12 097 32
Benefit obligations (16 718) (15 215) (1 049) (1 012)
Funded status at 31 December (3 868) (3 118) (1 046) (1 010)
Unrecognised net transition liability/(asset) (117) (178) – –
Unrecognised net actuarial loss/(gain) 2 662 3 285 156 (34)
Unrecognised prior service cost 142 178 11
Other (SFAS 112 liabilities) n/a n/a (29) (30)
Net amount recognised at 31 December (1 181) 167 (918) (1 073)
Amount recognised in the statement of financial position consists of:
Prepaid benefit cost 1 147 1 543 – –
Accrued benefit liability (2 328) (1 376) (918) (1 069)
Additional minimum liability (2 233) (2 454) – –
Intangible asset 148 94––
Accumulated other comprehensive income 2 085 2 360 – (4)
Net amount recognised at 31 December (1 181) 167 (918) (1 073)
The projected benefit obligation, accumulated benefit obligation, and fair value of plan assets, in total and for plans where the accumulated
benefit obligation (ABO) is in excess of plan assets is as follows:
€ million € million € million € million
Plans where Plans where
Pension Pension ABO exceeds ABO exceeds
plans plans plan assets plan assets
2003 2002 2003 2002
As at 31 December
Projected benefit obligations 16 718 15 215 10 703 11 015
Accumulated benefit obligations 15 531 14 049 9 980 10 188
Fair value of plan assets 12 850 12 097 6 073 7 334
Net periodic cost
€ million € million € million € million € million € million
Other post- Other post- Other post-
Pension Pension Pension employment employment employment
plans plans plans benefit plans benefit plans benefit plans
2003 2002 2001 2003 2002 2001
Components of net periodic benefit cost(a)
Service cost (gross) 329 324 253 23 20 20
Interest cost 895 864 737 63 78 83
Expected returns on plan assets (791) (1 189) (1 007) – – –
Expected employee contributions (21) (9) (1) – – –
Amortisation of prior service cost 36 33 24 1––
Amortisation of transition (asset) (59) (63) (63) – – –
Amortisation of actuarial loss/(gain) 217 (45) (81) (1) (6) (2)
Total before SFAS 88 events 606 (85) (138) 86 92 101
Adjustments for SFAS 88 events 83 (118) 43 (1) (23) (2)
Net periodic benefit cost 689 (203) (95) 85 69 99
(a) With effect from 1 January 2003, a number of additional pension plans were included in the SFAS 87 valuation exercise. This increased the
coverage from 90% to 100%. With effect from 1 January 2002, other plans had been included that had raised the coverage to 90% in
2002, from 76% in 2001.
In 2002 and previous years the Group did not calculate pension costs and balances under SFAS 87 for a number of small defined benefit plans.
The amounts originally recognised for these plans in the group accounts under SSAP 24 would not have been materially different under
SFAS 87. The amounts previously provided in the Group balance sheet for these plans were 2002: €1 129 million (2001: €1 685 million). The
amounts previously charged in the profit and loss account were 2002: €158 million (2001: €202 million).