What is the future of globalisation?

Once seen as self-correcting, globalisation is now volatile, fragmented and driven by escalating instability.

Amid resurgent nationalism and rising global friction, globalisation has moved from consensus to contention, now a central fault line in geopolitics. Once seen as the engine of progress, economic integration now draws fierce resistance from populists like Donald Trump, who cast globalism as a threat to sovereignty and national identity. Globalisation has undeniably powered growth and innovation, but it has also deepened inequality and cultural dislocation. The post-World War II boom, particularly in the US, showcased its promise, yet the benefits were uneven, sowing discontent and backlash. Nowhere are globalisation's contradictions starker than in the US, the world's richest nation, yet mired in ballooning $35 trillion debt and a chronic trade deficit. These imbalances expose the fragility beneath the facade of dominance. While the US still wields unmatched clout in finance, tech and defence, its internal fractures complicate the myth of unshaken leadership.