One of the keynote speakers at the country’s largest mining conference, American economist Todd Buchholtz, has raised concerns over the industry’s dependence on continued Chinese growth.

 

Mr Buchholtz told an audience at the Diggers and Dealers conference that he believed there was a 10 to 15 year window in which the Australian mining sector would enjoy continued demand in minerals and resources from China, but that there would come a time when demand could not be taken for granted.

 

"China has been a locomotive of growth. China will continue for the next 10-15 years to be a locomotive for growth," Mr Buchholtz said.

 

"China will be buying access to natural resources in Australia, Africa and Canada. But this is not a trajectory. It's not something to extrapolate here on out.

 

"I'm not one of those people that believe China conquers all economically, China has deep economic, political and social issues."

 

"China is not going to be a hyper-competitive giant, but will be a more mature partner in international trade."