Postretirement Benefit Plans

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

The components of net periodic benefit cost for our defined benefit pension plans are as follows:


	Three Months Ended
	March 31,
(in millions)	2020		2019
Domestic defined benefit pension plans:
Service cost	$	1	$	1
Interest cost	1		1
Expected return on plan assets	(2)		(2)

Amortization of net actuarial loss	1		—
Net periodic benefit cost	$	1	$	—
International defined benefit pension plans:
Service cost	$	3	$	3
Interest cost	4		5
Expected return on plan assets	(4)		(9)

Amortization of net actuarial loss	3		2

Net periodic benefit cost	$	6	$	1
Total net periodic benefit cost	$	7	$	1

The components of net periodic benefit cost other than the service cost component are included in the line item "Other non-operating income, net" in the Condensed Consolidated Income Statements.

The total net periodic benefit cost for other postretirement employee benefit plans was less than $1 million including net credits recognized into other comprehensive income of less than $1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2020 and March 31, 2019, respectively.

We contributed $12 million and $5 million to our defined benefit plans during the three months ended March 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively. Additional contributions ranging between approximately $10 million and $20 million are expected during the remainder of 2020.

During Q1 2020, the Company purchased a bulk annuity policy with an insurance company for its largest defined benefit plan in the UK, as a plan asset, to facilitate the termination and buy-out of the plan. The bulk annuity fully insures the benefits payable to the participants of the plan until a full buy-out of the plan can be executed, which is expected to occur in 2021. Included in the Company's Q1 contributions is $5 million paid to meet the shortfall between the cost of the bulk annuity policy and the plan assets. As a result of the change in assets from a mix of equities and bonds to the bulk annuity, the plan's expected rate of return on assets was reduced to 1.00% at December 31, 2019. The rate at December 31, 2018 was 7.25%. On January 27, 2020, the plan's assets of $336 million were transferred to the insurance company for the purchase of the bulk annuity.