Less than six months ago, when trade disputes were draining Chinese investment into the United States, hopes were high that the world’s second-largest economy would turn to Europe. That optimism has proven short-lived.

Collectively, North America and Europe received $30 billion in direct investment from Chinese entities in 2018—a sharp 73 percent drop from a year earlier and the lowest level in six years, according to a recent report compiled by Baker McKenzie and Rhodium Group, an independent New York-based research provider.