The funding position of UK corporate pension schemes has moved into surplus despite the crash in equity markets, according to Mercer.

The consultancy has calculated that schemes provided by FTSE 350 companies sported an aggregate surplus of £1bn (€1.3bn, $1.7bn) at the end of September, a month in which the FTSE All-Share index slid 13.4 per cent, compared to a deficit of £47bn at the end of June.