Australian mining giant Rio Tinto will continue to benefit from China's rapid growth rates as the country's demand for iron ore, copper, coal and aluminum will increase dramatically during the next 15 years.

Rio Tinto's commodity sales to China, the leading importer of all the abovementioned commodities, increased from less than $1 billion to $10.7 billion in 2009, Rio Tinto's report entitled ‘2010 Chart Book' issued on March 16 revealed.

The company said that per capita incomes in China are still only 13 percent of those in the US on purchasing power basis, the country's urbanization rate is still only 45 percent and there are only 33 automobiles in China for every 1,000 residents compared to 800 in the US, underlying the scope for continued strong economic growth in the country.

As reported by news sources, Rio Tinto CEO Tom Albanese said that he was optimistic about long-term growth prospects, given China's anticipated demand. "India is expected to follow, supporting a further potential wave of strong commodity demand," he added.