An outplacement firm said on Wednesday that U. S. high-tech companies are still announcing employee layoffs, but at a rate 70 percent less than a year ago.

Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. said that computer, electronics and telecommunications employers announced 35,375 job cuts from January to June, down 70 percent from last year's 118,108, the highest six-month total in seven years.

The firm also said that announced layoffs fell 52 percent to 56,521 the second half of last year, making this year's six-month 37 percent less than that second-half total.

It was also reported that the biggest slowdown in announced technology job cuts occurred in electronics firms, which saw announced job cuts drop 95 percent to 2,406 so far this year from 45,799 in the first half of 2009.

Planned downsizing among computer firms fell 67 percent to 16,964 job cuts from 51,461 a year earlier.

Challenger, Gray said that telecommunications firms announced 16,005 job cuts the first half of the year, 23 percent fewer than the 20,848 cuts announced at the same point in 2009. (With Inputs from Agencies)