Ever since China joined the World Trade Organisation in 2001 the criticism from the US and other big powers has been remarkably uniform: China is doing too little to advance the cause of global trade liberalisation and, when the tough negotiating starts, Beijing hides behind other developing economies.

The critics were at it again last week in Geneva as China, which last year became the world’s biggest trader of goods, submitted itself to the biennial ritual of its WTO “trade policy review”. “We now need to see China’s active leadership,” the US declared in its response.

But the trope may be starting to wear thin. Divining what China is up to – or thinking – is never easy. However, there are mounting signs that, in the world of trade at least, China is coming out of its shell and starting to take a more proactive role. And, equally significantly, that it is starting to put distance between itself and the other big emerging economies.