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The tsunamis are “certain to have some effect” on shipments, said Elliot Lifson, president of the Canadian Apparel Federation and vice-chairman of Peerless Clothing Inc. in Montreal. However, he said he was heartened by news that Maersk Sealand, a major shipping firm, is back operating in most of its Indian Ocean ports after just a day's delay.

He said both Sri Lanka and Indonesia are key suppliers of low-cost commodity apparels to Canada. Peerless does not have suppliers in those countries, he said, but does subcontract some production to Bangladesh, which suffered some damage from the tsunamis.

Any diversion of shipments would come at a bad time for the poorest developing countries. On Saturday, import quotas will be lifted, giving China unrestricted access to markets in North America and Europe. More than any tsunami, that is what worries garment suppliers in countries such as Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.