Hurricane Trump threatens to blow China off course

IF CHINA’S RULING elites could decide the duration of President Donald Trump’s war on Iran, two months would be a popular choice. A short war would not hurt America enough, is the icy verdict of a policy adviser in Beijing. His calculus reflects a consensus in national-security circles: that Mr Trump’s Middle Eastern campaign is at once a daunting display of firepower and a historic act of self-harm. Against that, experts agree, a longer conflict would damage China too much. As the biggest importer of energy and largest exporter of goods, China would suffer if high oil and gas prices or closed shipping routes were to trigger a global recession.