Uniqlo is facing a storm of online criticism in China after a BBC report quoted the chief executive of its owner as saying the company does not source cotton from the far western region of Xinjiang.

The British broadcaster published an interview on Thursday with Tadashi Yanai, the chief executive of Fast Retailing, in which it asked him if the Japanese retailer sourced cotton from the region.

The report went viral on Chinese social media platform Weibo on Friday, with several users slamming the company and some saying they would stop buying its products.