[PARKER LOGO]                                                    EXHIBIT 99.1

FOR RELEASE:     IMMEDIATELY

CONTACT:         Media -
                 Lorrie Paul Crum, VP - Corp. Communications  216/896-2750

                 Financial Analysts -
                 Timothy K. Pistell, Treasurer                216/896-2130

STOCK SYMBOL:PH - NYSE

PARKER HANNIFIN WELCOMES COMMERCIAL INTERTECH WITH COMPLETION OF MERGER

Cleveland and Youngstown, Ohio: April 11, 2000 - Parker Hannifin and Commercial
Intertech announced the completion of their merger today, after receiving
approval at a special meeting of Commercial Intertech shareholders held this
morning.

As a result of the merger, Commercial Intertech shareholders receive 0.4611
shares of Parker common stock for each share of Commercial Intertech common
stock owned except for those shares for which a cash election was made. Because
more than 49 percent of the Commercial Intertech shares represented cash
elections, shareholders who elected to receive cash for all or part of their
shares will receive a prorated combination of cash and stock. The specific terms
of the proration will be announced on or about April 24, 2000, and letters of
transmittal will be sent to shareholders shortly thereafter. For those
Commercial Intertech shareholders who receive Parker stock, the transaction will
be tax-free.

This transaction is among 45 mergers, joint ventures and acquisitions that
Parker has completed since April 1993, which together have added more than $1.8
billion in first-year sales. It also furthers the company's strategy to fuel
sustainable growth via systems engineering, offering the complete breadth of
motion-control capabilities to customers in its industrial, mobile, commercial
and aerospace markets.

"We are very pleased to welcome Commercial Intertech as a valuable addition to
the Parker family," said Duane Collins, Parker's Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer. "We have laid the groundwork for a successful business combination, and
we're ready to get started on honing our strengths."


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The companies said their progress in preliminary planning has paved the way for
fast integration of their systems and business processes. President and Chief
Operating Officer Don Washkewicz said, "Integration planning confirmed what we
believed to be strengths of Commercial Intertech - particularly the quality of
their employees and the breadth of their product portfolio. Together, we have a
lot of growth opportunities ahead."

Hydraulics Group President Marwan Kashkoush said, "Starting today, we have
greater resources, greater knowledge and greater competitive strength to take
the company built by Commercial Intertech employees even further with our
investment and commitment to growth."

With $5 billion in annual sales, Parker Hannifin Corporation is the world's
leading diversified manufacturer of motion and control technologies, providing
systematic, precision-engineered solutions for a wide variety of commercial,
industrial and aerospace markets. For more information, visit the company's web
site at www.parker.com, or its investor information site at www.phstock.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:
Forward-looking statements contained in this and other written and oral reports
are made based on known events and circumstances at the time of release, and as
such, are subject in the future to unforeseen uncertainties and risks. All
statements regarding future performance, events or developments, including
statements related to earnings accretion and synergies to be realized in the
merger, are forward-looking statements. It is possible that the company's future
performance may differ materially from current expectations expressed in these
forward-looking statements, due to a variety of factors such as changes in:
business relationships with and purchases by or from major customers or
suppliers; competitive market conditions and resulting effects on sales and
pricing; increases in raw-material costs which cannot be recovered in product
pricing; global economic factors, including currency exchange rates and
difficulties entering new markets; ability to successfully integrate Commercial
Intertech's business with Parker's; and factors noted in the companies' reports
filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

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