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Employee Benefits
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Retirement Benefits [Abstract]  
Employee Benefits Employee Benefits
We maintain a number of active defined contribution retirement plans for our employees. The majority of our defined benefit plans are frozen. As a result, no new employees will be permitted to enter these plans and no additional benefits for current participants in the frozen plans will be accrued.

We also have supplemental benefit plans that provide senior management with supplemental retirement, disability and death benefits. Certain supplemental retirement benefits are based on final monthly earnings. In addition, we sponsor a voluntary 401(k) plan under which we may match employee contributions up to certain levels of compensation as well as profit-sharing plans under which we contribute a percentage of eligible employees’ compensation to the employees’ accounts.

We also provide certain medical, dental and life insurance benefits for active employees and eligible dependents. The medical and dental plans and supplemental life insurance plan are contributory, while the basic life insurance plan is noncontributory. We currently do not prefund any of these plans.

We recognize the funded status of our retirement and postretirement plans in the consolidated balance sheets, with a corresponding adjustment to accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of taxes. The amounts in accumulated other comprehensive loss represent net unrecognized actuarial losses and unrecognized prior service costs. These amounts will be subsequently recognized as net periodic pension cost pursuant to our accounting policy for amortizing such amounts.

Net periodic benefit cost for our retirement and postretirement plans other than the service cost component are included in other income, net in our consolidated statements of income.
Benefit Obligation
A summary of the benefit obligation and the fair value of plan assets, as well as the funded status for the retirement and postretirement plans as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, is as follows (benefits paid in the table below include only those amounts contributed directly to or paid directly from plan assets): 
(in millions)Retirement PlansPostretirement Plans
 2023202220232022
Net benefit obligation at beginning of year$1,407 $2,122 $20 $28 
Service cost2 3 — — 
Interest cost74 48 1 1 
Plan participants’ contributions— — — — 
Actuarial loss (gain) 57 (636)1 (6)
Gross benefits paid(70)(86)(2)(3)
Foreign currency effect20 (44)— — 
Other adjustments 1
(65)— — — 
Net benefit obligation at end of year1,425 1,407 20 20 
Fair value of plan assets at beginning of year1,464 2,231 5 6 
Actual return on plan assets115 (647)(1)1 
Employer contributions10 11 — — 
Plan participants’ contributions— — — — 
Gross benefits paid(70)(86)(3)(2)
Foreign currency effect19 (45)— — 
Other adjustments 1
(65)— — — 
Fair value of plan assets at end of year1,473 1,464 1 5 
Funded status$48 $57 $(19)$(15)
Amounts recognized in consolidated balance sheets:
Non-current assets$238 $232 $— $— 
Current liabilities(10)(10)— — 
Non-current liabilities(180)(165)(19)(15)
$48 $57 $(19)$(15)
Accumulated benefit obligation$1,418 $1,401 
Plans with accumulated benefit obligation in excess of the fair value of plan assets:
Projected benefit obligation$190 $175 
Accumulated benefit obligation$182 $168 
Fair value of plan assets$— $— 
Amounts recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax:
Net actuarial loss (gain)$410 $400 $(37)$(39)
Prior service credit— — (11)(12)
Total recognized$410 $400 $(48)$(51)
1Relates to the impact of lump sum benefit payments to terminated vested participants to settle existing pension obligations owed under the plan. The non-cash pretax settlement charge reflects the accelerated recognition of a portion of unamortized actuarial losses in the plan.

Net Periodic Benefit Cost

For purposes of determining annual pension cost, prior service costs are being amortized straight-line over the average expected remaining lifetime of plan participants expected to receive benefits.
A summary of net periodic benefit cost for our retirement and postretirement plans for the years ended December 31, is as follows: 
(in millions)Retirement PlansPostretirement Plans
 202320222021202320222021
Service cost$2 $3 $4 $— $— $— 
Interest cost74 48 40 1 1 1 
Expected return on assets(101)(87)(104)— — — 
Amortization of:
Actuarial loss (gain)6 15 21 (2)(2)(2)
Prior service credit— — — (2)(2)(1)
Net periodic benefit cost (19)(21)(39)(3)(3)(2)
Settlement charge 1
23 13 3 — — — 
Total net periodic benefit cost$4 $(8)$(36)$(3)$(3)$(2)
1Lump sum withdrawals exceeded the combined total anticipated annual service and interest cost of our U.S. retirement plan during the year ended December 31, 2023 and U.K. plan during the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, triggering the recognition of non-cash pre-tax settlement charges of $23 million, $13 million and $3 million for 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Our U.K. retirement plan accounted for a cost of $4 million in 2023 and a benefit of $6 million and $22 million in 2022 and 2021, respectively, of the net periodic benefit cost attributable to the funded plans.

Other changes in plan assets and benefit obligations recognized in other comprehensive income, net of tax for the years ended December 31, are as follows:
(in millions)Retirement PlansPostretirement Plans
 202320222021202320222021
Net actuarial loss (gain) $33 $67 $(6)$1 $(3)$(1)
Recognized actuarial (gain) loss(5)(12)(15)1 1 1 
Prior service cost— — — 1 1 (1)
Settlement charge 1
(18)(10)(2)— — — 
Total recognized$10 $45 $(23)$3 $(1)$(1)
1Lump sum withdrawals exceeded the combined total anticipated annual service and interest cost of our U.S. retirement plan during the year ended December 31, 2023 and U.K. plan during the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, triggering the recognition of non-cash pre-tax settlement charges of $23 million, $13 million and $3 million for 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.
The total cost for our retirement plans was $170 million for 2023, $124 million for 2022 and $93 million for 2021. Included in the total retirement plans cost are defined contribution plans cost of $120 million, $88 million and $86 million for 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

Assumptions
 Retirement PlansPostretirement Plans
 202320222021202320222021
Benefit obligation:
Discount rate 1
5.27 %5.63 %3.05 %5.18 %5.52 %2.72 %
Net periodic cost:
Discount rate - U.S. plan 1
5.63 %3.05 %2.75 %5.52 %2.72 %2.20 %
Discount rate - U.K. plan 1
4.76 %1.87 %1.36 %
Return on assets 2
6.00 %4.00 %5.00 %
1Effective January 1, 2023, we changed our discount rate assumption on our U.S. retirement plans to 5.63% from 3.05% in 2022 and changed our discount rate assumption on our U.K. plan to 4.76% from 1.87% in 2022.
2The expected return on assets assumption is calculated based on the plan’s asset allocation strategy and projected market returns over the long-term. Effective January 1, 2023, our return on assets assumptions for the U.S. retirement plans and U.K plan remained unchanged at 6.00% and 5.50%, respectively.

Cash Flows

Expected employer contributions in 2024 are $11 million and $3 million for our retirement and postretirement plans, respectively. In 2024, we may elect to make non-required contributions depending on investment performance and the pension plan status.

Information about the expected cash flows for our retirement and postretirement plans is as follows: 
(in millions)
Retirement
Plans 1
Postretirement Plans 2
2024$75 3 
202577 3 
202680 2 
202782 2 
202883 2 
2029-2033445 7 
1Reflects the total benefits expected to be paid from the plans or from our assets including both our share of the benefit cost and the participants’ share of the cost.
2Reflects the total benefits expected to be paid from our assets.

Fair Value of Plan Assets

In accordance with authoritative guidance for fair value measurements certain assets and liabilities are required to be recorded at fair value. Fair value is defined as the amount that would be received for selling an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants. A fair value hierarchy has been established which requires us to maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs when measuring fair value. The three levels of inputs used to measure fair value are as follows:
•Level 1 - Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.
•Level 2 - Observable inputs other than Level 1 prices, such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities; quoted prices in markets that are not active; or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.
•Level 3 - Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities.
The fair value of our defined benefit plans assets as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, by asset class is as follows:
(in millions)December 31, 2023
 TotalLevel 1Level 2Level 3
Cash and short-term investments$3 $3 $— $— 
Fixed income:
Long duration strategy 1
991 — 991 — 
Real Estate:
U.K. 2
34 — — 34 
Total$1,028 $3 $991 $34 
Common collective trust funds measured at net asset value as a practical expedient:
Collective investment funds 3
445 
Total$1,473 
(in millions)December 31, 2022
 TotalLevel 1Level 2Level 3
Cash and short-term investments$5 $5 $— $— 
Equities:
U.S. indexes 4
6 6 — — 
Fixed income:
Long duration strategy 1
1,007 — 1,007 — 
Intermediate duration securities38 — 38 — 
Real Estate:
U.K. 2
34 — — 34 
Infrastructure:
U.K. 5
81 — 81 — 
Total$1,171 $11 $1,126 $34 
Common collective trust funds measured at net asset value as a practical expedient:
Collective investment funds 3
293 
Total$1,464 
1Includes securities that are mainly investment grade obligations of issuers in the U.S.
2Includes a fund which holds real estate properties in the U.K.
32023 and 2022 includes the Standard & Poor’s 500 Composite Stock Index, the Standard & Poor’s MidCap 400 Composite Stock Index, a short-term investment fund which is a common collective trust vehicle, and other various asset classes. Additionally, 2023 includes the Standard & Poor’s MidCap 600 Composite Stock Index.
4Includes securities that are tracked in the S&P Smallcap 600 index.
5Includes funds that invest in global infrastructure for the U.K. Pension.
For securities that are quoted in active markets, the trustee/custodian determines fair value by applying securities’ prices obtained from its pricing vendors. For commingled funds that are not actively traded, the trustee applies pricing information provided by investment management firms to the unit quantities of such funds. Investment management firms employ their own pricing vendors to value the securities underlying each commingled fund. Underlying securities that are not actively traded derive their prices from investment managers, which in turn, employ vendors that use pricing models (e.g., discounted cash flow, comparables). The domestic defined benefit plans have no investment in our stock, except through the S&P 500 commingled trust index fund.

The trustee obtains estimated prices from vendors for securities that are not easily quotable and they are categorized accordingly as Level 3. The following table details further information on our plan assets where we have used significant unobservable inputs:
(in millions)Level 3
Balance as of December 31, 2022
$34 
       Distributions(1)
       Gain (loss) 1 
Balance as of December 31, 2023
$34 

Pension Trusts’ Asset Allocations

There are two pension trusts, one in the U.S. and one in the U.K.
•The U.S. pension trust had assets of $1,176 million and $1,185 million as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 respectively, and the target allocations in 2023 include 90% fixed income, 5% domestic equities, 3% international equities and 2% cash and cash equivalents.
•The U.K. pension trust had assets of $297 million and $279 million as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, and the target allocations in 2023 include 67% fixed income, 16% equities, 12% real estate and 5% diversified growth funds.
The pension assets are invested with the goal of producing a combination of capital growth, income and a liability hedge. The mix of assets is established after consideration of the long-term performance and risk characteristics of asset classes. Investments are selected based on their potential to enhance returns, preserve capital and reduce overall volatility. Holdings are diversified within each asset class. The portfolios employ a mix of index and actively managed equity strategies by market capitalization, style, geographic regions and economic sectors. The fixed income strategies include U.S. long duration securities, intermediate credit, high yield, and U.K. debt instruments. The short-term portfolio, whose primary goal is capital preservation for liquidity purposes, is composed of government and government-agency securities, uninvested cash, receivables and payables. The portfolios do not employ any financial leverage.

U.S. Defined Contribution Plan

Assets of the defined contribution plan in the U.S. consist primarily of investment options, which include actively managed equity, indexed equity, actively managed equity/bond funds, target date funds, S&P Global Inc. common stock, stable value and money market strategies. There is also a self-directed mutual fund investment option. The plan purchased 146,600 shares and sold 179,569 shares of S&P Global Inc. common stock in 2023 and purchased 67,248 shares and sold 60,473 shares of S&P Global Inc. common stock in 2022. The plan held approximately 1.2 million shares of S&P Global Inc. common stock as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, with market values of $518 million and $402 million, respectively. The plan received dividends on S&P Global Inc. common stock of $4.5 million and $4.0 million during the years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.