Sam Walsh: China to remain key driver in iron ore demand

After China cut its economic growth target to 7.5 percent in 2012 from a target of eight percent growth set for the past eight years, Rio Tinto's iron ore chief executive Sam Walsh has said that China will continue to be a key consumer of iron ore, according to media reports.
 
Mr. Walsh assured investors worried that Rio Tinto could face an oversupply of iron ore that 7.5 percent economic growth is not considered low by many countries, adding that China's crude steel consumption is forecast to amount to 1 billion mt by 2020.
 
Rio Tinto will also continue to hire people due to the labor shortage in the Western Australia resources industry caused by the mining boom mostly driven by Chinese demand, Walsh said.