The company said that it is to cut staffing costs ahead of an expected slowdown in chip sales in the second half of 2012. In an interview with the Financial Times chief executive Warren East said depressed smartphone sales could hit revenues, and the group is braced for a further slowdown in the second half of the year. East said that many of the chip companies are indicating that they are not expecting an uplift and mathematically that will hit us.
As a result the group is cutting recruitment and hiring graduates to save pennies.East said he would have liked to do more this year but the uncertainty of the business climate has made ARM hold off. The company is tilting from hiring more experienced people towards hiring graduates, who tend to be a bit cheaper.