UK pension deficit surges to 'staggering' £136bn

The aggregate deficit of UK defined benefit (DB) schemes surged to a 'staggering' £135.9bn in March, up from £124.6bn at the end of February, latest Pension Protection Fund (PPF) data has revealed. At the start of 2020 the aggregate deficit figure stood at just £10.9bn, while aggregate asset values plummeted from £1,720.9bn in February to £1,680.5bn in March. AJ Bell said the fall in the value of liabilities over the same period, from £1,845.5bn to £1,816.4bn, helped mitigate the impact. Tom Selby, a senior analyst at AJ Bell, commented: "As the coronavirus shutdown has forced economi...