Rusal's management reportedly said on a conference call that business had returned to normal after sanctions were lifted.

He believes aluminum demand in Asia will recover in the second half of this year, and the overall aluminum market is expected to be in good shape next year, including demand from Asia, Japan and South Korea.

Management said it expects to repay $900 million in debt this year and will do so through internal resources.

Oleg Mukhamedshin, rusal's deputy chief executive, said in a conference call that the company expects a shortage of about one million tons of aluminum in the global market outside China this year. In particular, China's aluminum production has declined in the past few years, and it is believed that China will also have a gap in aluminum demand this year, which will reduce China's aluminum exports.

Roman Andryushin, head of sales and marketing, said on a conference call that rusal was working to restore its pre-sanctions sales structure.

"We've almost done that in Asia," he said.

He added that the company aims to achieve at least as many sales in the region, including Japan, as it has in the past. Sales in America remain slow; Europe accounts for about half of sales.

Mr Andryushin said rusal preferred to deal directly with customers and did not elaborate on contracts with traders, including glencore.