UK – Ports operator Associated British Ports has bucked the trend for reporting pension deficits by saying its scheme is in surplus and that it is continuing its contribution holiday.

The company said that an actuarial valuation of its main defined benefit scheme, carried out as of December 31 2000, “confirmed that the pension scheme remained in surplus at that date”.

“The group is therefore maintaining its contribution holiday,” it said in a statement. “At the end of 2002, under FRS17, the scheme's assets of 385.8 million pounds (573.1 million euros) exceeded the scheme's liabilities by 33.8 million pounds (50.2 million euros).”

FRS17 is a new accounting rule which takes a snapshot of a pension fund’s liabilities.

The DB scheme was close to new entrants on April 1 2002 and replaced with a defined contribution scheme.

The company, the UK’s largest ports operator, reported pre-tax profit for 2002 rose 6% to 138.1 million pounds on turnover of 401.9 million pounds.

Elsewhere though, it was news as usual in terms of corporate pension deficits. Security firm Chubb said it estimates that it will have to top its UK and overseas pension schemes by a total 18 million pounds in the 2003 financial year.

Merrill Lynch has said corporate pension fund deficits are dragging on the global economic recovery and ratings agency S&P has begun to downgrade stocks due to pension underfunding.