China’s rising surpluses are helping to offset a weak domestic economy.

Fast forward 10 years, and China’s domestic economy is hurting mostly because of a housing market crash.

China’s lavish subsidies, including loans from state-run banks, have helped sustain companies that might otherwise have folded in a struggling domestic economy.

The Solomons’ closer relationship with China and a troubled domestic economy will be weighing on voters’ minds as they cast their ballots.

That leaves Mr. Scholz facing the delicate act of balancing the export-oriented needs of his domestic economy with pressure from allies to leverage his country’s position to make demands on the Chinese.