ABSTRACT
In 1977-78 when the Chinese leaders first launched their modernization programs, their target for the coal industry was to increase its annual output to one billion metric tons by 1987. This was to be accomplished by increasing the mechanization of existing mines and the building of large new mines with the aid of imported technology and equipment. The prospects of China's coal industry will depend on the availability of financial resources for new investment and technological improvement. Since the mid-1970s, China has relied on oil export as one of the major sources of foreign exchange earnings to finance its imports of technology. The Chinese leaders are likely to stress the development of rural energy sources which utilize rural resources and minimize the competition for oil between agriculture on the one hand and export, industry, and transportation on the other hand. Available evidence indicates that China's plant protection programs have been quite successful.
