By: Russ Kamp, Managing Director, Ryan ALM, Inc.

We are pleased to share with you the Ryan ALM, Inc. 1Q’23 Newsletter. We hope that you find our insights useful.

As you will see, first quarter asset performance was certainly a big improvement following 2022’s struggles. However, asset growth didn’t exceed liability growth during the quarter if you valued plan liabilities using FASB accounting, as the fall in US interest rates propelled liability growth. Plans operating under GASB that use the return on asset (ROA) assumption witnessed assets exceeding liabilities.

The newsletter also contains a number of research articles and blog posts that were produced during the first quarter. The article that was written by Ron Ryan discussing ASOP 4’s new guidance on valuing pension liabilities using more market-based discount rates is particularly timely given that these changes are in effect for actuarial valuations after February 2023.

As always, we welcome your feedback and questions. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Have a wonderful day.