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Retirement Benefits
 3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2012
Compensation and Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]  
RETIREMENT BENEFITS
RETIREMENT BENEFITS

We provide pension benefits and OPEB, such as health care and life insurance, to employees in many of our operations around the world.

The expense for our defined benefit pension and OPEB plans for the periods ended March 31 was as follows (in millions):
 
First Quarter
 
Pension Benefits
 
 
 
 
 
U.S. Plans
 
Non-U.S. Plans
 
Worldwide OPEB
 
2012
 
2011
 
2012
 
2011
 
2012
 
2011
Service cost
$
130

 
$
117

 
$
93

 
$
80

 
$
17

 
$
15

Interest cost
552

 
594

 
298

 
303

 
72

 
82

Expected return on assets
(718
)
 
(757
)
 
(334
)
 
(348
)
 
—

 
—

Amortization of
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

Prior service costs/(credits)
55

 
86

 
18

 
18

 
(136
)
 
(152
)
(Gains)/Losses
106

 
48

 
103

 
76

 
32

 
29

Separation programs/other
7

 
(1
)
 
34

 
12

 
1

 
—

(Gains)/Losses from curtailments and settlements
—

 
—

 
—

 
—

 
(10
)
 
—

Net expense/(income)
$
132

 
$
87

 
$
212

 
$
141

 
$
(24
)
 
$
(26
)

Pension Plan Contributions

In the first quarter of 2012, we contributed about $1.1 billion to our worldwide funded pension plans (including $500 million in discretionary contributions to our U.S. plans), and made about $100 million of benefit payments directly by the Company for unfunded plans.  We expect to contribute from Automotive cash and cash equivalents an additional $2.3 billion to our worldwide funded plans in 2012 (including discretionary contributions to our U.S. plans of $1.5 billion), and to make an additional $300 million of benefit payments directly by the Company for unfunded plans, for a total of about $3.8 billion this year.

Based on current assumptions and regulations, we do not expect to have a legal requirement to fund our major U.S. pension plans in 2012.