The drive by corporations to end their legacy pension plans will continue as they seek ways to remove them from their books, research by PricewaterhouseCoopers found.

Just 6 percent of the 114 Fortune 500 multinational companies said they want to continue their defined benefits plans with more than eight in 10 saying new employees are not eligible for them and 71 percent having frozen contributions for current employees.

Corporations have been looking at removing their pension liabilities from their balance sheets. Rising stock prices and higher interest rates last year moved the average pension plan closer to being fully funded. That, in turn, made it more attractive for companies to consider using methods like offering retirees lump sum payments as a way to derisk them.

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