April 30 (Bloomberg) -- Britain may be among the worst-hit world economies by the fallout from the global credit crunch, according to the chief economist at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the London-based Times reported.

Jim O'Neill said the U.K., being very dependant on financial services, would be ``in the eye of the storm'' of a ``deleveraging world economy.'' British homeowners would weather the brunt of the financial services slowdown, the Times cited O'Neill as saying.

The declining fortunes of the U.K.'s services industry means Britain is likely to lose ground to the rest of Europe, O'Neil said, according to the Times.

O'Neill said the expansion of Brazil, Russia, India and China will alleviate the U.S. slowdown and support the world economy, the newspaper reported.

To contact the reporter on this story: Sarah Shannon in London at sshannon4@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: April 30, 2008 17:06 EDT