Top 3 mining firms still banking on China demand despite cloudy outlook

Melbourne

AFTER spending US$1 trillion since 2002 on projects to feed China's commodity boom, the world's mining companies have a lot riding on their biggest customer.

While commodities may be trading at five-year lows, the heads of three top miners BHP Billiton Ltd, Vale SA and Rio Tinto Group last week all backed China, the world's second-biggest economy, to keep buying increasing amounts of their products deep into the next decade. Not everyone agrees.