Annual Report 2004 [PDF/1.1MB]

6. ACCRUED RETIREMENT BENEFITS
The Company and its domestic consolidated subsidiaries have defined benefit plans, i.e., welfare pension fund plans, tax-qualified
pension plans and lump-sum payment plans.
The funded and accrued status of the retirement benefit plans of the Company and its domestic consolidated subsidiaries at
March 31, 2004 and 2003 are summarized as follows:
Millions of yen
2004 2003
Thousands of
U.S dollars
2004
Retirement benefit obligation
¥ (31,927)
¥ (36,237)
$ (302,082)
Fair value of plan assets
12,045
10,090
113,965
Unfunded retirement benefit obligation
(19,882)
(26,147)
(188,117)
Unrecognized net retirement benefit obligation at transition
8,744
10,014
82,733
Unrecognized actuarial loss
8,701
10,369
82,326
Unrecognized prior service cost
(2,823)
(26,710)
Accrued retirement benefits
¥ (5,260)
¥ (5,764)
$ (49,768)
The domestic consolidated subsidiaries have adopted simplified methods of calculating their accrued retirement benefits as
permitted under the accounting standard for retirement benefits.
Pursuant to the Defined Benefit Corporate Pension Plan Law, the Company obtained approval from the Minister of Health, Labour
and Welfare on July 25, 2002 for an exemption from future retirement benefit obligation with respect to the substitutional
portion of the employees' Welfare Pension Fund Plans which the Company operates on behalf of the Japanese government.
The Company accounted for the separation of the substitutional portion from the corporate portion of the benefit obligation under
its employees' Welfare Pension Fund Plans as of the date of approval of its exemption, assuming that the transfer to the
Japanese government of the substitutional portion of the benefit obligation and the related pension plan assets had been completed
as of that date. As a result, the Company recognized a gain of ¥463 million for the year ended March 31, 2003.
On March 1, 2004 the Company changed its welfare pension fund plan to a type of defined benefit plan known as a "cash balance
plan."
Retirement benefit expenses of the Company and its domestic subsidiaries included the following components for the years
ended March 31, 2004 and 2003:
Millions of yen
2004 2003
Thousands of
U.S dollars
2004
Service cost
¥ 1,166
¥ 1,421
$ 11,032
Interest cost
768
984
7,267
Expected return on plan assets
(468)
(864)
(4,428)
Amortization of net retirement benefit obligation at transition
919
992
8,695
Actuarial losses
1,025
908
9,698
Prior service cost
(21)
(19)
(199)
Net periodic retirement benefit expenses
¥ 3,389
¥ 3,422
$ 32,065
Gain on return of substitutional portion of Welfare Pension Fund Plans
(463)
Total
¥ 3,389
¥ 2,959
$ 32,065
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