The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Chief Economic Maurice Obstfeld said in an interview with IMF Survey on Monday that the slowdown in the Chinese economy could again have a negative impact on the global financial markets in 2016.

"Growth below the authorities' official targets could again spook global financial markets," he said.

Obstfeld pointed out that the spillovers from the slowdown in Chinese economy have been larger than expected.

"The global spillovers from China's reduced rate of growth, through its diminished imports and lower demand for commodities, have been much larger than we would have anticipated," the IMF chief economist noted.