On December 31, 2013, the Mercer pension health index for Canadian pension plans stood at 106%, the highest level since June 2001. The index began 2013 at 82% and reached 98% by the third quarter. Mercer is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc.. It provides human resources services and related financial advice, products and services, and it tracks and rates by index the funded status of hypothetically defined benefit pension plans. A strong stock market and rising long-term interest rates in 2013 have contributed to the beneficial effect on defined benefit pensions plans. Mercer representatives estimated that about 40% of pension plans were fully-funded at 2013 year-end, compared with about 6% at the beginning of the year. Contributing to the improved condition of the defined benefit pension plans, long-term Government of Canada bond yields were up .9% at year-end over January 2013, ending at 3.2%. The bonds are a key factor to calculate the liabilities of pension plans. Mercer also estimates that, when long-term interest rates increase by one percentage point, liabilities of most pension plans are reduced by 10% to 15 %. Under a defined benefit pension, a plan pays a guaranteed amount to retirees, while under a defined contribution plan, a member receives a given amount that they then invest to pay for their retirement. The low interest rates experienced prior to 2013 drove up the liabilities of plans and forced employing companies to make large contributions to make up the difference. The appeal of defined contribution pension plans has increased over the past years, given the burgeoning costs of pensions, because their costs are more predictable than those of defined benefit plans, and they are not directly affected by changes to interest rates or the stock market.