Mining boom not yet over for Australia: economist

A leading official Australian economist brushed off on Wednesday business sentiment that the local mining boom is in decline.

The federal Department of Industry and Science chief economist Mark Cully, instead, said the boom was set to continue but not as fast as it has in recent years.

His opinion, given at an economic conference in Sydney, was at odds with pessimism about the resources industry which has driven Australia's growth.

"A general impression which might be easy to form at the moment is that the boom is over," Cully told the conference.

"We reckon that's wrong. The production phase of the boom is just starting for Australia. Whereas the high price phase lasted for around eight years and the investment phase about six, we see the production phase set to last far longer." Endi