Deglobalization or deglobalisation is the process of diminishing interdependence and integration between certain units around the world, typically nation-states. It is widely used to describe the periods of history when economic trade and investment between countries decline. It stands in contrast to globalization, in which units become increasingly integrated over time, and generally spans the time between periods of globalization. While globalization and deglobalization are antitheses, they are not mirror images.

The term of deglobalization has derived from some of the very profound change in many developed nations, where trade as a proportion of total economic activity until the 1970s was below previous peak levels in the early 1910s. This decline reflects that their economies become less integrated with the rest of the world economies in spite of the deepening scope of economic globalization. At the global level only two longer periods of deglobalization occurred, namely in the 1930s during the Great Depression and 2010s, when following the Great Trade Collapse the period of the World Trade Slowdown set in.

The occurrence of deglobalization has strong proponents who have claimed the death of globalization, but is also contested by the former Director-General of the World Trade Organization Pascal Lamy and leading academics such as Michael Bordo who argue that it is too soon to give a good diagnosis and Mervyn Martin who argues that US and UK policies are rational answers to essential temporary problems of even strong nations.

While as with globalization, deglobalization can refer to economic, trade, social, technological, cultural and political dimensions, much of the work that has been conducted in the study of deglobalization refers to the field of international economics.

Deglobalization is often a response to a financial crisis, a conflict or an economic patriotism. However past evidence shows that globalization and deglobalization often follow regular cycles. There have been two main waves of deglobalization in the trade history:

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, countries were affected by a sharp globalization consequently of the Industrial Revolution, advancements in transportation, and financial integration. However the economic growth and the stability of global trade were damaged by the First World War (1914-1918). After World War I, nations struggled to rebuild their economies and the Great Depression (1929–1939) worsen the global economic recession, leading to high unemployment and political instability. Many countries implemented thereafter protectionist trade policies. Among the policies the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act (1930) in the US, led to high tariffs on imports, and the Imperial Preference System in the UK, promoted trade within the British Empire. As a result countries began to prioritize their national production and economy instead of international markets, leading to a period of deglobalization. World War II (1939–1945) disintegrated furthermore the global economy as international trade and financial markets became a secondary priority compared to the countries survival.

The 2008 financial crisis marked a second wave of deglobalization. In particular, during the crisis global trade and investments slowed down because of the risk faced by banks and enterprises. In addition governments began to prioritize domestic markets and industries instead of international trade while the trust in multilateral institutions, like the IMF and the WTO, fall due to financial instability.

During the 2010s, multiple events affected the global trade, causing a deglobalization process. The main events include: