Kaiser Aluminum, one of the biggest U.S. aluminum makers, has filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday, after suffering from falling aluminum prices and a mounting debt.

Kaiser has been hit by the slowdown in the manufacturing sector, which has driven down aluminum prices because of lowered demand. The slowdown has hurt the entire aluminum industry, but Kaiser has been affected the most due to the high level and short maturity of its debts.

Kaiser has been also hurt by thousands of asbestos-related lawsuits against it, which have led to about $130 million of litigation costs.

Kaiser hopes it can emerge from bankruptcy by restructuring and refinancing its debt. But some analysts say Kaiser is more likely to be forced to sell many of its assets to rival aluminum companies from the United States and overseas.

Some information for this report provided by Reuters and Bloomberg.

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