Economic relations between the US and China have become so mutually dependent and potentially destructive that a cottage industry has built up to give them a name. Historian Niall Ferguson coined the term “Chimerica” while Zbigniew Brzezinski, Jimmy Carter's national security adviser, proposed the creation of a G2 between the two countries. Even comedian Stephen Colbert has got in on the act, labelling them “frenemies”, a mixture of friends and enemies.

Just how they intend to approach this complicated dance will become a little clearer over the next couple of days with the first trip to Beijing by Tim Geithner, the US Treasury secretary.

China brings a host of complaints to the meetings. With a domestic audience angry about lending so much money to the US, Chinese leaders have warned loudly that the US might seek to inflate away its mounting debt burden. The bond market is full of talk that China has switched the long-term Treasuries it holds into shorter maturities, giving its investment managers an escape exit for at least some of its holdings if inflation does take off.