DHAKA: China finance experts have warned that Britain’s decision to leave the European Union will ‘cast a shadow over the global economy’.

Finance minister Lou Jiwei said the ‘repercussions and fallout’ will emerge over the next five to 10 years, reports the BBC.

Huang Yiping, a member of China’s central bank monetary policy committee, said the Brexit could mark a ‘reversal of globalization’.

If so, he said, it would be ‘very bad’ for both the world and China.

Last year, China was responsible for $3.3 billion worth of foreign direct investment in Britain, according to law firm Baker & McKenzie. Between 2005 and 2015, it has invested nearly $30 billion in Britain.

David Cameron announced £40 billion worth of deals between Britain and China following a visit to the UK by President Xi Jinping in October last year.

While Lou said the result ‘will cast a shadow over the global economy’, he added that it was difficult to predict the outcome and said the reaction from global stock markets, which fell sharply on Friday, may have been overdone.

‘The knee-jerk reaction from the market is probably a bit excessive and needs to calm down and take an objective view,’ he said.

BDST: 2032 HRS, JUN 26, 2016
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