Swiss watchmaker Swatch apologized Monday for an ad campaign that upset consumers in China and elsewhere and said it had “immediately removed all related materials worldwide.”

In an image for the Swatch Essentials collection, an Asian male model is shown pulling the edges of his eyelids upward and backward with his fingers in a "slanted eye" pose — a gesture seen as derogatory and racist, Swiss public broadcaster SRF reported.

The ad was widely condemned online in China, with many comments on the social media platform Weibo accusing the company of deliberate discrimination and calling for a boycott.

Swatch wrote on Instagram that “we sincerely apologize for any distress or misunderstanding this may have caused.” It said it would “treat this matter with the utmost importance.”

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