Affordable Robotic crashes 32% in 5 sessions, hits one-year low; firm clarifies on stock movement

Affordable Robotic & Automation Ltd (ARAPL) shares resumed their slide on Friday after a brief pause, touching a new 52-week low of Rs 268.25 during intraday trade. The stock eventually closed 4.27 per cent lower at Rs 269. With this, the counter has tanked 32.48 per cent in just five sessions, following the United States' decision to impose steep additional tariffs on Indian goods. Washington recently doubled duties on certain Indian exports to 50 per cent by adding a 25 per cent levy.

Meanwhile, bourses BSE and NSE have placed the securities of ARAPL under the short-term Additional Surveillance Measure (ASM) framework, a mechanism used to caution investors about heightened volatility in stock prices.

In response to an exchange query over the sharp decline in its stock price, ARAPL clarified that it has already disclosed the necessary updates regarding the impact of tariff changes.

"We have already given intimation under Regulation 30 of the SEBI (LODR) Regulations, 2015, regarding the press release issued by our subsidiary, ARAPL RaaS Pvt Ltd, announcing a comprehensive strategy to address the recent tariff changes affecting imports into the US," the company said.

It further added: "Apart from this, there is no undisclosed/price sensitive information or any impending announcement/corporate action which needs to be informed to the stock exchanges at this point of time and which may have a bearing on the price/volume behaviour in the company's scrip."

ARAPL's subsidiary brand, Humro, which provides autonomous material handling and robotics solutions, has outlined a detailed plan to mitigate the effect of higher US duties.

The company noted that the US warehouse automation market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 20.6 per cent between 2025 and 2030, growing from $5.78 billion in 2024 to nearly $16.6 billion by the end of the decade. While acknowledging that the tariff hike would impact around 7 per cent of its topline, Humro said it has already implemented proactive measures to safeguard customers and maintain competitiveness.