It has been argued that ‘connector’ countries can benefit from trade tensions by bridging the gap between trade blocs. This column examines trade flows of six Asian emerging markets from 2018 to 2022, distinguishing between trade reallocation and rerouting. While the impact of US–China trade tensions on most of these countries is unclear, Vietnam appears to have experienced trade reallocation rather than trade rerouting, supported by rising domestic production and stronger inward FDI. Despite potential short-term gains, trade reallocation increases connector countries’ vulnerability to geoeconomic fragmentation, with losses for all countries in the long run.

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