Anand Mahindra, chairman of Mahindra Group, the auto to aerospace Indian conglomerate with operations in Britain, said the world was behaving “as if a tsunami wave has hit” which he viewed as an over-reaction.
He said: “My hunch is that you’re going to see a fair amount of recovery in markets worldwide and a certain amount of objectivity and reason return to the perspective in which the Brexit is viewed from tomorrow.”
Earlier this year, the Indian company launched the e2o electric car in the UK where it already has a presence with its IT business Tech Mahindra.
Mr Mahindra said Britain’s decision to leave may prove advantageous.
“The last time I spoke to the people in the British government about reducing taxes and duty on electric vehicles, they said they were hampered from doing so because of the European Union protocols and tariffs.
“So I hate to say this but as far as our electric vehicles are concerned this is probably something where I could go back to them and say you know you’re going to have your own discretion to lower the taxes from now on. So I’m certainly going to drive that point home.”
Adi Godrej, chairman of India’s Godrej Group, which operates worldwide and sells beauty brands such as Soft & Gentle and Bio-Oil in Britain, was less sanguine than Mr Mahindra. He said it was surprising the UK had taken a decision “which is going to be so negative for it from an economic point of view”.
He added that it would affect Indian companies which had set up in Britain as a gateway to the EU.
“It will be bad because they will have to establish themselves in other parts of Europe.”
