AT&T moves US$17 billion pension plan and benefit losses to the past

Starting with the results for the latest quarter, the phone company will instead recognize charges due to changes in interest rates and asset values once a year, in the fourth quarter. That will result in a pretax charge US$2.7 billion for last year's fourth quarter, for which AT&T is due to report results on Jan. 27. AT&T is also adjusting results for previous quarters, as if the accounting change had been in place then. For example, the result for the fourth quarter of 2008 is now a loss of US$13.3 billion, or $2.25 per share, rather than the originally reported profit of $2.40 billion, or 41 cents per share.