Bangladesh’s garments industry is reeling after authorities imposed a curfew and communications blackout as part of a deadly crackdown on student protesters, forcing factories to shut and disrupting shipments from the world’s second-largest clothing exporter.

More than 100 people have been killed in recent days in clashes between police and students, who are demonstrating against a job quota system that they say benefits allies of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government, reports Financial Times.

The London-based newspaper mentioned that Bangladesh authorities last week imposed the curfew, cut off mobile and internet services and deployed the army, with security forces reportedly given shoot-on-sight orders.

Restrictions were partially lifted on Wednesday after a court watered down the quota system and protesters began dispersing, which allowed shut factories to partially reopen, though connectivity remained patchy.

The turmoil in the country of 170mn has alarmed groups including H&M, as blackouts prevented brands from communicating with their contractors. The unrest also delayed orders, raised shipping costs and shook confidence in Bangladesh, one of the industry’s most important global suppliers. In 2023 the country exported $47bn worth of ready-made garments.

One global industry executive said the violence and disruption had “massively dented confidence in [Bangladesh’s] ability to function as a state”, as companies were working to speed up overdue orders.

“It will either mean late delivery for brands or dramatic overtime in the next week or two, which given the poor unionisation of workers, who knows what’s going to be forced upon them.

“People looking for stability will be looking for more stable states,” the executive added. “If there was an order that couldn’t be placed last week, it would have been placed in India or Vietnam. . . once an order goes, it’s going to be very difficult to get it back.”

Felix Chung, honorary chair of the Hong Kong Apparel Society, an industry group, said shipping delays and obstacles to transport goods to ports would prompt western buyers to consider shifting parts of their supply chain to other south-east Asian countries such as Vietnam and Cambodia.

“Manufacturers can’t control how long the situation would last before it gets under control,” he said. “If the situation drags on, buyers may cancel orders”, and manufacturers could face significant losses.

“The speed of garment production has definitely [been] affected, and it may need delivery extensions by one week or so,” said Naveen Jha, chief executive of the Sourcing Place, a China-based textiles and clothing sourcing group that orders fabric in Bangladesh. “The political situation and negotiations will continue for more time.”

Analysts said the widespread shutdowns had taken a heavy toll on Bangladesh’s economy, which was celebrated for its rapid export-led transformation but has endured a painful slowdown since the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, the country’s main trade body, told Al Jazeera that the industry was losing $150mn a day during the curfew. The Financial Times was unable to reach executives from BGMEA due to connectivity issues.

The fallout from the protests will add to shipping costs that have already surged due to conflict in the Red Sea. Freight market tracker Xeneta said rates for exports from Bangladesh’s Chittagong port to northern Europe had tripled over the past year to $6,400 per 40ft shipping container.

Political observers said the protests, which had opposed allocation of a third of public sector jobs to descendants of veterans of Bangladesh’s 1971 independence war with Pakistan, had spiralled into a broader expression of anger against Sheikh Hasina’s increasingly repressive rule.

The prime minister, who has been in power for two decades, was elected to a fifth term this year in an election marred by a crackdown on her rivals.

“Even if the law and order situation remains under control because of the high-handed security presence, that will not guarantee her a strong mandate,” said Kamal Ahmed, a columnist and political analyst. “I don’t see how she can command respect and authority over all people and the administration.”

H&M said it was “concerned about . . . the violence” and “continuously monitoring the developments”.

Steve Lamar, president of the American Apparel & Footwear Association, which represents companies including Adidas and Gap, said its “primary goal” was “to keep our workers safe and minimise disruptions”.

Lamar said he hoped the backtrack on the controversial job quotas would “effectively resolve the situation so that the industry can continue to support livelihoods across the country”.