In this Analysis, Lowy Institute Research Fellow Tristram Sainsbury examines the evolving global economic leadership roles of the United States and China.

Key findings

• The rise of the Chinese economy means that China and the United States must share a role, although not necessarily an equal one, in shaping global economic rules.
• The United States is struggling to accommodate China’s desire for a greater say in the way that the global economy is run, as reflected in the US approach to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Trans-Pacific Partnership and IMF governance reform.
• Unless the United States shares economic governance with China, it will undermine US economic leadership and have a negative impact on the management of the global economy.