Other Financial Instruments and Fair Value Measurements (Tables)

6 Months Ended

Oct. 31, 2012

Other Financial Instruments and Fair Value Measurements [Abstract]

Carrying amount and fair value of financial instruments

	October 31, 2012		April 30, 2012
	Carrying Amount	Fair Value	Carrying Amount	Fair Value
Other investments	$ 46,555	$ 46,555	$ 36,173	$ 36,173
Derivative financial instruments - net	2,256	2,256	(13,952)	(13,952)
Long-term debt	(2,069,196)	(2,458,408)	(2,070,543)	(2,443,514)

Financial assets (liabilities) measured at fair value on a recurring basis

	Quoted Prices in	Significant	Significant
	Active Markets for	Observable	Unobservable	Fair Value at
	Identical Assets	Inputs	Inputs	October 31,
	(Level 1)	(Level 2)	(Level 3)	2012
Other investments: (A)
Equity mutual funds	$ 19,491	$ 0	$ 0	$ 19,491
Municipal obligations	0	26,383	0	26,383
Other investments	681	0	0	681
Derivatives: (B)
Commodity contracts - net	847	579	0	1,426
Foreign currency exchange contracts - net	13	817	0	830
Long-term debt (C)	(796,272)	(1,662,136)	0	(2,458,408)
Total financial instruments measured at fair value	$ (775,240)	$(1,634,357)	$ 0	$ (2,409,597)

	Quoted Prices in	Significant	Significant
	Active Markets for	Observable	Unobservable	Fair Value at
	Identical Assets	Inputs	Inputs	April 30,
	(Level 1)	(Level 2)	(Level 3)	2012
Other investments: (A)
Equity mutual funds	$ 14,649	$ 0	$ 0	$ 14,649
Municipal obligations	0	20,392	0	20,392
Other investments	1,132	0	0	1,132
Derivatives: (B)
Commodity contracts - net	(12,788)	(618)	0	(13,406)
Foreign currency exchange contracts - net	(1)	(545)	0	(546)
Long-term debt (C)	(777,023)	(1,666,491)	0	(2,443,514)
Total financial instruments measured at fair value	$ (774,031)	$(1,647,262)	$ 0	$ (2,421,293)

(A) The Company’s other investments consist of funds maintained for the payment of benefits associated with nonqualified retirement plans. The funds include equity securities listed in active markets and municipal obligations valued by a third party using valuation techniques which utilize inputs that are derived principally from or corroborated by observable market data. As of October 31, 2012, the Company’s municipal obligations are scheduled to mature as follows: $3,587 in 2013, $707 in 2014, $2,714 in 2015, $548 in 2016, and $18,827 in 2017 and beyond.

(B) The Company’s Level 1 derivatives are valued using quoted market prices for identical instruments in active markets. The Level 2 derivatives are valued using quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets and inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability. For additional information, see Note 13: Derivative Financial Instruments.

(C) The Company’s long-term debt is comprised of public Notes classified as Level 1 and private Senior Notes classified as Level 2. The public Notes are traded in an active secondary market and valued using quoted prices. The value of the private Senior Notes is based on the net present value of each interest and principal payment calculated, utilizing an interest rate derived from a fair market yield curve. For additional information, see Note 9: Debt and Financing Arrangements.