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Pensions and other benefits (Tables)
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Retirement Benefits [Abstract]  
Net Periodic Benefit Cost
The elements of net periodic benefit (recovery) cost for DB pension plans and other benefits recognized in the year include the following components:

 PensionsOther benefitsTotal
For the year ended December 31 (in millions of Canadian dollars)202320222021202320222021202320222021
Current service cost$71 $148 $171 $10 $11 $13 $81 $159 $184 
Other components of net periodic benefit (recovery) cost:
Interest cost on benefit obligation486 383 351 22 16 16 508 399 367 
Expected return on plan assets(882)(959)(959)— — — (882)(959)(959)
Recognized net actuarial loss (gain)32 153 206 13 (5)(1)45 148 205 
Amortization of prior service costs2 1 — — — — 2 1 — 
Total other components of net periodic benefit (recovery) cost(362)(422)(402)35 11 15 (327)(411)(387)
Net periodic benefit (recovery) cost$(291)$(274)$(231)$45 $22 $28 $(246)$(252)$(203)
Schedule of Changes in Projected Benefit Obligation
Information about the Company’s DB pension plans and other benefits, in aggregate, is as follows:

 PensionsOther benefitsTotal
(in millions of Canadian dollars)202320222023202220232022
Change in projected benefit obligation:
Projected benefit obligation at January 1$9,936 $12,884 $411 $503 $10,347 $13,387 
Current service cost71 148 10 11 81 159 
Interest cost486 383 22 16 508 399 
Employee contributions48 42 — — 48 42 
Benefits paid(656)(680)(37)(22)(693)(702)
Foreign currency changes(4)16 6 — 2 16 
Addition of KCS plans— — 31 — 31 — 
Plan amendments and other18 27 (1)— 17 27 
Net actuarial loss (gain)407 (2,884)21 (97)428 (2,981)
Projected benefit obligation at December 31$10,306 $9,936 $463 $411 $10,769 $10,347 
Schedule of Changes in Fund Assets
 PensionsOther benefitsTotal
(in millions of Canadian dollars)202320222023202220232022
Change in plan assets:
Fair value of plan assets at January 1$12,862 $14,938 $5 $5 $12,867 $14,943 
Actual return on plan assets1,207 (1,464)1 — 1,208 (1,464)
Employer contributions15 14 37 22 52 36 
Employee contributions48 42 — — 48 42 
Benefits paid(656)(680)(37)(22)(693)(702)
Foreign currency changes(4)12 — — (4)12 
Fair value of plan assets at December 31$13,472 $12,862 $6 $5 $13,478 $12,867 
Funded status – plan surplus (deficit)$3,166 $2,926 $(457)$(406)$2,709 $2,520 
Funded Status of Pension Plans
The table below shows the aggregate pension projected benefit obligation and aggregate fair value of plan assets for pension plans with fair value of plan assets in excess of projected benefit obligations (i.e. surplus), and for pension plans with projected benefit obligations in excess of fair value of plan assets (i.e. deficit):

 20232022
(in millions of Canadian dollars)Pension
plans in
surplus		Pension
plans in
deficit		Pension
plans in
surplus		Pension
plans in
deficit
Projected benefit obligation at December 31$(9,872)$(434)$(9,512)$(424)
Fair value of plan assets at December 3113,210 262 12,613 249 
Funded status$3,338 $(172)$3,101 $(175)
Pension Asset and Liabilities in the Company's Consolidated Balance Sheets
Amounts recognized in the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheets are as follows:

 PensionsOther benefitsTotal
As at December 31 (in millions of Canadian dollars)202320222023202220232022
Pension asset$3,338 $3,101 $— $— $3,338 $3,101 
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities(11)(10)(37)(33)(48)(43)
Pension and other benefit liabilities(161)(165)(420)(373)(581)(538)
Total amount recognized$3,166 $2,926 $(457)$(406)$2,709 $2,520 
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss
Amounts recognized in AOCI are as follows:

 PensionsOther benefitsTotal
As at December 31 (in millions of Canadian dollars)202320222023202220232022
Net actuarial (loss) gain:
Other than deferred investment (losses) gains$(1,871)$(1,711)$28 $35 $(1,843)$(1,676)
Deferred investment (losses) gains(191)(301)— — (191)(301)
Prior service cost(47)(31)(1)(1)(48)(32)
Deferred income tax626 608 (7)(9)619 599 
Total (Note 8)
$(1,483)$(1,435)$20 $25 $(1,463)$(1,410)
Actuarial Assumptions
Weighted-average actuarial assumptions used were approximately:

(percentages)202320222021
Benefit obligation at December 31:
Discount rate4.64 5.01 3.01 
Projected future salary increases2.75 2.75 2.75 
Health care cost trend rate5.00 5.00 5.00 
Benefit cost for year ended December 31:
Discount rate5.01 3.01 2.58 
Expected rate of return on plan assets (1)
6.90 6.90 6.90 
Projected future salary increases2.75 2.75 2.75 
Health care cost trend rate5.00 5.00 5.00 
(1) The expected rate of return on plan assets that will be used to compute the 2024 net periodic benefit recovery is 6.70%.
Pension Plan Asset Allocation and Weighted-average Policy Ranges
The Company’s pension plan asset allocation, the weighted-average asset allocation targets, and the weighted-average policy range for each major asset class at year-end were as follows:

 Percentage of plan assets
 at December 31
Asset allocation (percentage)Asset allocation targetPolicy range20232022
Cash and cash equivalents2.7 
0 – 10
2.2 1.1 
Fixed income38.1 
20 – 43
31.2 20.5 
Public equity29.7 
24 – 55
35.8 46.4 
Real estate and infrastructure14.7 
6 – 20
11.3 11.4 
Private debt7.4 
3 – 13
8.4 7.7 
Absolute return7.4 
3 – 13
11.1 12.9 
Total100.0 100.0 100.0 
Summary of the Assets of the Company's DB Pension Plans
The following is a summary of the assets of the Company’s DB pension plans at December 31, 2023 and 2022. As at December 31, 2023 and 2022, there were no plan assets classified as Level 3 valued investments.

Assets Measured at Fair Value
Investments
measured at NAV(1)
Total Plan
Assets
(in millions of Canadian dollars)Quoted prices in
active markets
for identical assets (Level 1)		Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)
December 31, 2023
Cash and cash equivalents$297 $— $— $297 
Fixed income
Government bonds(2)
211 1,900 — 2,111 
Corporate bonds(2)
644 998 — 1,642 
Mortgages(3)
206 — — 206 
Mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities(4)
— 123 — 123 
Public equities
Canada534 — — 534 
U.S. and international4,293 — — 4,293 
Real estate(5)
— — 563 563 
Infrastructure(6)
— — 961 961 
Private debt(7)
— — 1,128 1,128 
Derivative instruments(8)
— 116 — 116 
Absolute return(9)
Funds of hedge funds— — 1,498 1,498 
$6,185 $3,137 $4,150 $13,472 
December 31, 2022
Cash and cash equivalents$218 $— $— $218 
Fixed income
Government bonds(2)
180 1,125 — 1,305 
Corporate bonds(2)
432 724 — 1,156 
Mortgages(3)
182 2 — 184 
Public equities
Canada769 — — 769 
U.S. and international5,195 — — 5,195 
Real estate(5)
— — 722 722 
Infrastructure(6)
— — 744 744 
Private debt(7)
— — 992 992 
Derivative instruments(8)
— (81)— (81)
Absolute return(9)
Funds of hedge funds— — 1,658 1,658 
$6,976 $1,770 $4,116 $12,862 
(1) Investments measured at net asset value ("NAV"):
Amounts are comprised of certain investments measured using NAV (or its equivalent) as a practical expedient. These investments have not been classified in the fair value hierarchy.
(2) Government & Corporate Bonds:
Fair values for bonds are based on market prices supplied by independent sources as of the last trading day.
(3) Mortgages:
The fair values of mortgages are based on current market yields of financial instruments of similar maturity, coupon and risk factors.
(4) Mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities:
The fair values of mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities are determined based on valuations from pricing sources that incorporate broker-dealer quotations, reported trades or valuation estimates from their internal pricing models which consider tranche-level attributes, current market data, estimated cash flows and market-based yield spreads and incorporate deal collateral performance, as available.
(5) Real estate:
Real estate fund values are based on the NAV of the funds that invest directly in real estate investments. The values of the investments have been estimated using the capital accounts representing the plans' ownership interest in the funds. Of the total, $480 million is subject to redemption frequencies ranging from monthly to annually and a redemption notice period of 90 days (2022 – $595 million). The remaining $83 million is not subject to redemption and is normally returned through distributions as a result of the liquidation of the underlying real estate investments (2022 – $127 million). As at December 31, 2023, there are $166 million of unfunded commitments for real estate investments (December 31, 2022 – $40 million).
(6) Infrastructure:
Infrastructure fund values are based on the NAV of the funds that invest directly in infrastructure investments. The values of the investments have been estimated using the capital accounts representing the plans' ownership interest in the funds. Of the total, $493 million is subject to redemption frequencies ranging from monthly to annually and a redemption notice period of 90 days (2022 – $356 million). The remaining $468 million is not subject to redemption and is normally returned through distributions as a result of the liquidation of the underlying infrastructure investments (2022 – $388 million). As at December 31, 2023, there are $220 million of unfunded commitments for infrastructure investments (December 31, 2022 – $356 million).
(7) Private debt:
Private debt fund values are based on the NAV of the funds that invest directly in private debt investments. The values of the investments have been estimated using the capital accounts representing the plans' ownership interest in the funds. Of the total, $124 million is subject to redemption frequencies ranging from monthly to annually and a redemption notice period of 90 days (2022 – $160 million). The remaining $1,004 million is not subject to redemption and is normally returned through distributions as a result of the repayment of the underlying loans (2022 - $832 million). As at December 31, 2023, there are $540 million of unfunded commitments for private debt investments (December 31, 2022 – $747 million).
(8) Derivatives:
The investment managers may utilize the following derivative instruments: equity futures to replicate equity index returns (Level 2); currency forwards to partially hedge foreign currency exposures (Level 2); bond futures and forwards to manage duration and interest rate risk (Level 2); interest rate swaps to manage duration and interest rate risk (Level 2); credit default swaps to manage credit risk (Level 2); and options to manage interest rate risk and volatility (Level 2). The Company may utilize derivatives directly, but only for the purpose of hedging foreign currency exposures. One of the fixed income investment managers utilizes a portfolio of bond forwards for the purpose of reducing asset/liability interest rate exposure. As at December 31, 2023, there are bond forwards with a notional value of $1,396 million (December 31, 2022 – $1,745 million) and a fair value of $116 million (December 31, 2022 – $(81) million).
(9) Absolute return:
The value of absolute return fund investments is based on the NAV reported by the fund administrators. The funds have different redemption policies with redemption notice periods varying from 30 to 120 days and frequencies ranging from monthly to triennially.
Estimated Future Benefit Payments
The estimated future DB pension and other benefit payments to be paid by the plans for each of the next five years and the subsequent five-year period are as follows:

(in millions of Canadian dollars)PensionsOther benefits
2024$668 $37 
2025663 35 
2026662 34 
2027661 33 
2028663 38 
2029-20333,265 159