For those who would like to see a decoupling of the world's No. 2 economy from global supply chains in order to ringfence the Asian giant threatening global domination, the current disruption triggered by the coronavirus outbreak has come as a dream come true.

Nothing so exemplifies this as the exultation implicit in United States Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross' words as he spoke to Fox Television and suggested that the virus outbreak first identified in Wuhan could accelerate the return of jobs to North America.