Starbucks chairman Howard Schultz has questioned the “moral fibre” of the US after neo-Nazi violence in Charlottesville.

Speaking at a forum on Tuesday, Mr Schultz said he was deeply worried about “the lack of character, morality, humanity” displayed at the white nationalist rally.

"The moral fibre, the values, and what we as a country have stood for is literally hanging in the abyss," Schultz said.

"We are at a critical juncture in American history. That is not an exaggeration. We are at and facing a crucible in which our daily life is being challenged and being questioned about what is right and what is wrong."

Mr Schultz said he was talking to employees at Starbucks “as an American, as a Jew, as a parent, as a grandparent” after violence carried out by white supremacist groups resulted in one person killed and more injured after a car ploughed through anti-fascist protestors.

He added: "My fear is not only that this behaviour is being given permission and license, but its conduct is being normalised to the point where people are no longer hiding their face."

Mr Schultz’s rebuke comes after Donald Trump disbanded two business advisory groups following criticisms from the business community.

Apple chief executive Tim Cook attacked the US President on Thursday for putting “a moral equivalence between white supremacists and Nazis, and those who oppose them by standing up for human rights”.