China’s President Xi Jinping, right, and Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela, in July 2014.
 
Associated Press
South America’s most economically troubled country, facing fears of a debt default amid tumbling oil prices and a cash crunch, has been thrown a lifeline by its largest lender, China.
The Asian giant loosened repayment terms on the nearly $50 billion in loans it has granted Venezuela since 2007, according to Venezuela’s Official Gazette. And President Nicolás Maduro said in a speech last week that his finance minister, Rodolfo Marco, would soon travel to China to try to secure new loans.
Mr. Maduro’s popularity has plummeted to 30%, polls show, as Venezuela’s currency collapses and the government struggles with the world’s highest inflation rate and widespread scarcity of basic goods. The country’s woes threaten the future of what Mr. Maduro’s predecessor, the late President Hugo Chávez , called 21st Century Socialism.
Analysts say Beijing’s flexibility may buy Mr. Maduro more time.
Last week the president used a $4 billion Chinese credit, traditionally earmarked by the Chinese government for infrastructure projects and held in off-budget funds, to increase reserves to $23.2 billion. China also recently lent $1.3 billion to help Argentina buoy falling reserves, giving President Cristina Kirchner, a close ally of Mr. Maduro, a cushion to help alleviate that country’s cash crunch.