More than $2.6 billion worth of orders in Bangladesh's garment sector have been withdrawn and new cancellations are coming up, according to the country's commerce minister.

Garments are a major source of export for the South Asian country as retail brands abroad source for apparel from Bangladeshi factories. But the coronavirus pandemic has led to many of those brands shutting down their stores, forcing them to cancel orders or delay shipments.

"More than $2.6 billion (worth of) orders have been canceled, and new cancellations are coming up," Tipu Munshi, Bangladesh's commerce minister, told CNBC's "Street Signs" on Friday.

"We are waiting to see how it improves; the moment things improve, we hope that the buyers will not cancel the orders or they will take the deliveries, maybe a little later, and they will pay the money to the factories," Munshi said.

More than 4,600 garment factories in Bangladesh make shirts, T-shirts, jackets, sweaters, and trousers; they are mostly shipped to Europe, the United States, and Canada, to be sold by local retailers in those countries.

Bangladesh is the world's second-largest clothing exporter behind China, according to ratings agency Moody's.

Ready-made garments comprised 84.21% of Bangladesh's total exports worth $40.5 billion in its 2018-2019 fiscal year, according to data posted on the website of trade body, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA). More than 60% of the garments were shipped to the European Union.