The 60-second ad, called "okey doke", is set in South America and follows a young European as he travels across the continent on his motorcycle to the tune of Hendrix's 'Ezy Rider'.
The viewer sees him interacting with friendly locals, observing the beautiful scenery and the exciting sites, happily interacting by using the "OK" symbol with his hand.
This works until he arrives in Brazil, where the same gesture is considered deeply offensive. The hero of the ad hastily makes his escape from a cantina where he has unwittingly offended the other diners.
Peter Stringham, global head of marketing at HSBC, said: "This is an engaging and energetic demonstration of the importance of local knowledge. It illustrates the kind of cultural faux pas we all try to avoid in a humorous way."
The campaign was written and art directed by Vince Squibb and directed by Chris Palmer through Gorgeous. It breaks in the UK on March 22 and will air globally from April 1. UK media is by New PHD and globally it is handled by ZenithOptimedia.
The ad builds on previous spots, including one set in a Chinese restaurant where an Englishman keeps being served ever larger portions of eel because he does not realise that leaving his plate empty is a sign that he has not had enough to eat.
Lowe faces the prospect of losing the HSBC account after the bank announced a global marketing communications review in January. Publicis Groupe has already been knocked out of the running, leaving Interpublic, WPP and Omnicom to battle it out for the account.
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