The new figure of 1.7 percent, down from the WTO's previous estimate of 2.8 percent in April, marked the first time in 15 years international commerce was seen lagging the growth of the world economy, the trade body said.

International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde said that Britain's shock vote to quit the European Union has injected significant uncertainty into the global economy but is unlikely to cause a world recession.

A vote to leave the European Union on June 23 would spook investors by undermining post-World War 2 attempts at European integration and placing a question mark over the future of the United Kingdom and its $2.9 trillion economy.

Fears Britain is on the verge of voting to leave the European Union next week spread through global financial markets on Monday, sending Asian and European shares sharply lower and the pound to an eight-week low.

Amid concerns of a slowing global growth, India is a beacon of hope and has the potential to drive the world economy for the next 10 years, former Singapore prime minister Goh Chok Tong said on Monday.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan has warned that a "sharp" slowdown in China's growth posed a threat to the global economy, highlighting possible impact from the shadow banking system of its neighbour, the Reserve Bank of India said.

Finance ministers from the world's largest developed economies met in Germany a year ago against a backdrop of faltering global growth, scant inflationary pressures and the latest chapter in the Greek debt crisis.