even by Australian companies, is performed in Asia. Mining The economic rise of China has produced a major demand for mining products, especially iron ore and coal. Iron Geoscience Australia calculates that the country's "economic demonstrated resources" of iron currently amount to 24 gigatonnes, or 24 billion tonnes. The current production rate from the Pilbara region of Western Australia is approximately 430 million tonnes a year and rising. Gavin Mudd (Monash University) and Jonathon Law (CSIRO) expect it to be gone within 30–50 years and 56 years, respectively. These 2010 estimates require on-going review to take into account shifting demand for lower-grade iron ore and improving mining and recovery techniques (allowing deeper mining below the groundwater table). Tensions remain high between management and labor unions. Coal In 1984 Australia surpassed the US as the world's largest coal exporter. One-third of Australia's coal exports were shipped from the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, where coal mining and transport had begun nearly two centuries earlier. Coal River was the first name given by British settlers to the Hunter River after coal was found there in 1795. In 1804 the Sydney-based administration established a permanent convict settlement near the mouth of the Hunter River to mine and load the coal, predetermining the town's future as a coal port by naming it Newcastle. Today, Newcastle, NSW, is the largest coal port in the world. Now the state of Queensland is Australia's top coal producer, with its Bowen Basin the main source of black coal, and plans by miners such as Gina Rinehart to open up the Galilee and Surat Basins to coal mining. China became the main customer. 2020 recession The Covid-19 pandemic reached Australia in January 2020. On 20 March, Australian borders were closed to all non-residents, impacting especially tourism and the entry of overseas students. Social distancing rules were imposed on 21 March, and “non-essential” services were closed, which included social gathering venues such as pubs and clubs but, unlike many other countries, did not include most business operations such as construction, manufacturing and many retail categories. A second wave of infections in Victoria emerged during May to June, and Victoria imposed a strict lockdown, which continued into September. State governments also imposed bans on cross state border movements. On 2 September 2020, as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, Australia officially went into recession (defined as two quarters of