In his latest tour to Europe this May, China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang was on a mission. He had a clear aim: to prevent Europe joining the United States in its endeavour to limit China’s access to advanced technology. He called on his German counterpart to “stick to the right path, jointly oppose the new cold war, and decoupling economies or severing supply chains”.

He faces an uphill struggle. But beyond that, the world economy is confronting more than the already fraught effects of US-China decoupling. As all three major engines of the global economy – the US, China and the European Union – go about trying to balance national security with trade and investment, the world economy is at risk of fragmentation.