FRANKFURT, GERMANY -- German printed circuit board fabricators reported sales fell 10% year-over-year in April, on typical seasonality.

April sales were down 10% sequentially for the month, ZVEI PCB and Electronic Systems said. The trade group indicated the drop was inline with the past decade.

New orders rose 7% over last year, but remain down 6% for the year to-date on slower demand for solar products.

The book-to-bill ratio was flat at 0.88, meaning 88 euros worth of PCBs were ordered for every 100 euros worth of boards shipped. A ratio over 1.0 is considered a sign of future growth.

Employment fell 4.5% for the month versus last year and is down 3.2% since Jan. 1.