Since 2010 Australia has dealt with major earthquakes and record floods, which have hit certain industries like coal mining particularly hard. In 2012 the slowing economic activity in China will begin to ripple through Asia Pacific countries into recession. China’s has heavy dependency on Australian mining and natrual resources. If China’s demand for these commodities weakens, the Australian economy will be hit with a double whammy because of the continent’s overdue housing market crash.