The illusion of decoupling from China: Costly trade barriers vs engagement

China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001. In 1990, countries across the world sourced 2.1 per cent of their total imports from China. By 2000, this share had more than tripled to 6.6 per cent. A decade after China’s accession to the WTO, its share of global imports had entered double digits, reaching 13.5 per cent in 2011. By 2019, just before the pandemic, the world relied on China for 16.3 per cent of its total imports.

 

The G7 economies have continued to run massive trade deficits with China, a key issue in US presidential elections. One response was