RIO Tinto chief executive Sam Walsh has declared China's iron ore appetite is showing no signs of ending, as the regional areas of the world's fastest growing nation start to industrialise.

In a speech to the Melbourne Mining Club in Beijing last night, Mr Walsh said it was likely China's next phase of economic growth would come outside the major cities and provinces.

The Chinese economy is forecast to grow by at least 7.5 per cent this year, meeting the government's official target. However, it is forecast that country areas of China are still growing by at least 10 per cent.

Rio Tinto yesterday marked its 30th anniversary of operating in Beijing by signing a memorandum of understanding to develop new technology with its major shareholder Chinalco, the state-owned mining firm.

Mr Walsh said he believed there were still international "misconceptions" surrounding China's future economic growth.

"It (China) is not all skyscrapers and Gucci stores. There are still hundreds of millions of people in the central and western regions who are waiting for modern infrastructure and the urban lifestyle that it supports," he said.

"Meeting those development needs will require more construction, which in turn will require more iron ore, more copper, more bauxite and more energy to power it all."

The new Coalition government and Australia's major mining companies have been quick to confirm the China resources boom has yet to end.

A new report by the Centre for Independent Studies released this week showed that while China's industrialisation process was well under way, 13 per cent of the population still lived in poverty. A survey in the report showed more than a quarter of the population also believed that their living conditions would improve as the nation's economic development progressed.

China is considered Rio Tinto's largest iron ore customer with the miner having sold 1.3 billion tonnes of the commodity to the nation during the past decade.

In the speech, Mr Walsh said the miner's relationship with Chinalco should dispel the myths of China's state-owned enterprises held by international investors.

"Chinalco's principal shareholder happens to be a government entity but their corporate goals and motives are largely identical to ours," he said. "They seek to run a profitable business that is internationally competitive, they worry about safety, sustainability, productivity and costs.

"There is no hidden agenda, just the same goals and concerns that occupy the directors of any Western companies."

There is growing speculation in China that the government will introduce major reforms to break up the monopolies of some SOEs, especially PetroChina, at its national plenum to be held next week.