Emirates Global Aluminum (EGA) profits halved in 2015 due to weak prices and a Chinese slowdown.

EGA, which owns Emirates Aluminium (Emal) and Dubai Aluminium (Dubal), says it made a net profit of $517.7m in 2015, down 49 per cent from $1.1bn a year earlier. Owned by state owned investment vehicle Mubadala, EGA is one of the world’s five largest primary aluminum producers.

Chief executive Abdulla Kalban said in a statement, “Last year was challenging for the aluminium industry, largely due to global macro-economic uncertainty, growth slowdown in China, a stronger US dollar and falling oil prices”.

Last year, revenue fell to $5bn, from $5.39bn the previous year.

Norsk Hydro, a top global producer, said in December 2015 that China’s aluminium production is expected to be 2-2.5 million tonnes higher than the country’s consumption in 2016, resulting in a global oversupply of up to 1 million tonnes.

With supply greatly exceeding demand, the benchmark three-month aluminium price has fallen nearly 30 per cent in the past year to six-and-a-half year lows.