That is why Mr Trump cannot treat today’s US trade deficits as 1970s-style balance-of-payments crises. The old Bretton Woods system ended in 1971. Today, America is not running out of gold to pay its creditors. It is losing ground in highly complex manufacturing to emerging rivals, especially China. It’s not just Mr Trump. The question isn’t whether western governments need industrial policies. It’s whether they can afford not to have them.