BMW is in talks to create a Chinese joint venture in a bid to expand the Mini brand into the world’s biggest and fastest growing car market.The talks with Great Wall Motor, China’s seventh largest carmaker and biggest producer of sport utility vehicles, will not affect jobs in the UK, said a person familiar with the situation. The venture would be focused on manufacturing an electric version of the Mini in China as part of an effort to meet the country’s regulations encouraging electric vehicle production, set to go into effect in 2019, the person added. The deal is not about “outsourcing” production or reducing capacity of Mini’s production site in Oxford, nor is it related to Brexit. “We are talking about additional growth, not outsourcing,” the person said. “If you look at Mini, it’s British in terms of origin but it has further potential to grow. That growth can’t just come from Oxford.” If a deal is struck, the Minis would be the first to be manufactured outside Europe. Shares in Great Wall shot up on Wednesday, leading to their suspension on Thursday, as investors speculated on the prospects of the deal. Great Wall, founded by billionaire chairman Wei Jianjun, said it will soon clarify press reports about the deal and resume trading of the company’s shares. BMW declined to comment.