Aleris International Announces Completion of Purchase of the Downstream Aluminum Business of Corus Group plc

Aleris International Announces Completion of Purchase of the Downstream Aluminum Business of Corus Group plc

August 02, 2006

    BEACHWOOD, Ohio, Aug. 2 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Aleris
International, Inc. (NYSE: ARS) announced today that it has
completed the purchase of the downstream aluminum business
of Corus Group plc.  The acquisition includes Corus's
aluminum rolling and extrusion businesses but does not
include Corus's primary aluminum smelters. 

    Steve Demetriou, Chairman and CEO of Aleris
International said, "We are extremely pleased to have
completed this acquisition which continues the
transformation of our company.  We are delighted to welcome
4,600 new employees to Aleris.  The acquisition provides
Aleris with a world-class technology platform and a
portfolio of high value-added products that significantly
diversifies our current offerings. Today, we are a global
company with significant assets in Europe and a foothold in
the high-growth China economy.  We expect to continue
Aleris's track record of growth and profitability and are
very excited about the future."

    About Aleris

    Aleris International, Inc. is a global leader in
aluminum rolled products and extrusions, aluminum recycling
and specification alloy production.  The Company is also a
recycler of zinc and a leading U.S. manufacturer of zinc
metal and value-added zinc products that include zinc oxide
and zinc dust.  Headquartered in Beachwood, Ohio, a suburb
of Cleveland, the Company operates 50 production facilities
in North America, Europe, South America and Asia, and
employs approximately 8,600 employees.  For more
information about Aleris, please visit our Web site at
http://www.aleris.com .

    SAFE HARBOR REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

    Forward-looking statements made in this news release
are made pursuant to the safe harbor provision of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  These
include statements that contain words such as
"believe," "expect,"
"anticipate," "intend,"
"estimate," "should" and similar
expressions intended to connote future events and
circumstances, and include statements regarding future
actual and adjusted earnings and earnings per share; future
improvements in margins, processing volumes and pricing;
overall 2006 operating performance; anticipated higher
adjusted effective tax rates; expected cost savings;
success in integrating Aleris's recent acquisitions,
including the acquisition of the downstream aluminum
businesses of Corus Group plc; its future growth; an
anticipated favorable economic environment in 2006; future
benefits from acquisitions and new products; expected
benefits from changes in the industry landscape and
post-hurricane reconstruction; and anticipated synergies
resulting from the merger with Commonwealth, the
acquisition of the downstream aluminum businesses of Corus
Group plc and other acquisitions.  Investors are cautioned
that all forward-looking statements involve risks and
uncertainties, and that actual results could differ
materially from those described in the forward-looking
statements. These risks and uncertainties would include,
without limitation, Aleris's levels of indebtedness and
debt service obligations; its ability to effectively
integrate the business and operations of its acquisition;
further slowdowns in automotive production in the U.S. and
Europe; the financial condition of Aleris's customers and
future bankruptcies and defaults by major customers; the
availability at favorable cost of aluminum scrap and other
metal supplies that the Company processes; the ability of
the Company to enter into effective metals, natural gas and
other commodity derivatives; continued increases in natural
gas and other fuel costs of the Company; a weakening in
industrial demand resulting from a decline in U.S. or world
economic conditions, including any decline caused by
terrorist activities or other unanticipated events; future
utilized capacity of the Company's various facilities; a
continuation of building and construction customers and
distribution customers reducing their inventory levels and
reducing the volume of the Company's shipments;
restrictions on and future levels and timing of capital
expenditures; retention of the Company's  major customers;
the timing and amounts of collections; currency exchange
fluctuations; future write-downs or impairment charges
which may be required because of the occurrence of some of
the uncertainties listed above; and other risks listed in
the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (the "SEC"), including but not limited
to the Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal
year ended December 31, 2005, and quarterly report on Form
10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2006, particularly the
sections entitled "Risk Factors" contained therein
and in the section entitled "Risk Factors"
contained in the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K filed
with the SEC on June 30, 2006.

    (Logo: 
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050504/CLW056LOGO )

    For more information, please contact:

     Michael D. Friday
     Aleris International, Inc.
     Tel: [phone]

SOURCE  Aleris International, Inc.