Latin American textile and apparel makers have urged the government to launch an aid package for ailing enterprises, substitute low-cost imported fabric for domestic alternatives and institute other actions to combat contraband and piracy. These businesses have been struggling to cut losses as US and European fashion brands cancel or postpone orders as the pandemic slows retail around the world.

Mexican banks are quickly curtailing lending to fend off a deep recession. When they do offer credit, they do so at prohibitive interest rates, Mexico’s government has demanded manufacturers shutter output but continue to pay workers while idle. And while makers can delay social security payments, they must repay them at a 2.5 percent interest rate once the crisis subsides, double the normal bank interest rates.

Suppliers in Central America are also suffering as hundreds of apparel makers serving the likes of Under Armour, Nike or Lululemon have closed shop, leaving production half staffed mainly because of a shift to make personal protective wear) or virtually shut such as in Dominican Republic, Nicaragua or Honduras. Most garment makers have given up on collecting payment for lost orders and will simply record the losses.

In Colombia, Grupo Crystal, which makes garments for companies including Chico’s, Zumba and Michael Kors, has received cancellations but is allowing clients to defer payments, said Jaime Sierra, who leads the company’s manufacturing plants in the city of Medellin.

Brazil retailers have been hit hard by strict lockdowns that are expected to last for two months. Designer Lenny Niemeyer, who makes bikinis and other beachwear for international department stores such as Bergdorf Goodman in New York, El Corte Ingles in Spain and Le Bon Marche in Paris, has lost up to $700,000 in international orders, nearly 50 percent of the $1.5 million it exports annually, and expects similar losses until the situation has normalised.