SiliconBeat

Actel, the Mountain View maker of power-control chips, fired 60 people Thursday, or about 10 percent of its work force. The company says that the layoffs, along with “other cost-saving measures”, will improve its operating expenses by about $2.5 million. The company estimates that it will be taking accounting charges related to the  job cuts of about $3 million.

Last month Actel said that sales for its third quarter ended Sept. 30 would drop more than it had previously forecast, although it predicted its operating margin would actually improve, something which we found curious at the time.

Actel shares, which fell $1.01, or 8.9 percent, to $10.40 the day before on no apparent news, rose $1.17, or 11.3 percent to $11.57 in regular trading today, before the layoff news was released.