An article in Nacion.com highlights the bankruptcy closure of the Compañía Textil Centroamericana as a basis for analyzing the decay of a once very important productive sector in the Costa Rican economy.

Executives from companies still involved in the market indicate that the main cause the industry’s deterioration is that "domestic labor is more expensive than in the rest of the Isthmus and in Asia."

Other factors identified include increasing prices of raw materials and the high amount of social security contributions paid for employees.

Several companies have closed their doors in Costa Rica and have opened elsewhere in the region where there are lower operating costs.

Source: Nacion.com

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Textile Liquidations Denounced in Honduras

June 2013

The president of the National Association of Manufacturers indicated that the exodus of textile companies from Honduras to other countries has intensified.

"At least 17 ​​textile companies have moved their investments to Nicaragua and at least seven to Campeche, Mexico, said the president of ANDI, Adolfo Facussé", according to an article in Proceso.hn.

Another Textile Company Closes in Costa Rica

March 2013

The owner will rent the textile plant to a cooperative formed by the 300 employees who have been laid off.

The textile industry in Costa Rica has been in decline for the last eight years due to loss of international competitiveness, which has now been compounded by a fall in the dollar's value. These are the same reasons put forward by Michael Borg, owner of the textile company Borkar, on closing its operations in the country.

Demand for Textiles Stagnates

June 2012

After strong growth in the early part of the year, textile mills in the free zones of Nicaragua are reducing their workforce due to falling orders from the U.S.

In January and February, customer demand in the U.S. grew by 55%, but has declined in recent months according to the growth of inventories, said representatives of companies in the textile zones.

Panamanian Textile Industry in Freefall

August 2011

The high cost of labor and other input materials has forced some companies to close operations.

Contrary to the performance of other countries in the region, the Panamanian textile industry has shown a significant decline in recent years compared to the positive performance of the eighties.