MEXICO CITY – Mexican business owners are trying to cling to life — often unsuccessfully — in an economic recession profoundly deepened by the COVID-19 pandemic and with almost no assistance from the government. Business owners report extending credit to clients while laying off workers, cutting their hours or reducing their salaries. The National Small Business Alliance said Tuesday that more than 150,000 mostly small businesses have been forced to close amid the pandemic. Their most recent survey, presented Tuesday, showed that 79% of business owners said their clients didn’t have enough money to cover the basic food basket, he said. Instead, he has offered $1,000 in low-interest credits to small businesses, as well as credits to some workers in the informal sector.