委內瑞拉經濟陷入絕境 中國會伸出援手嗎?

The economy of Venezuela, Latin America's largest oil producer, is on the brink of collapse, complete with dropping oil prices, heavy debt and a shortage of various necessities. The question of whether China will lend a helping hand has recently been drawing attention.

拉丁美洲最大的石油生產國委內瑞拉，由於持續下跌的油價，沉重的負債以及各種生產生活必需品的匱乏，目前經濟已處於崩潰的邊緣。中國到底會不會伸出援手的問題最近得到了許多關注。

A top Venezuelan economic official recently said that the country has reached a deal with China to improve the conditions of an oil-for-loans deal. According to the official, all conditions, including time frames and investment amounts, have been greatly improved.

一名委內瑞拉高級經濟官員最近表示，他們的國家已經和中國達成一項石油貸款的協議。根據該官員所說，所有的石油生產條件，包括時限和投資都得到了大大改善。

A Chinese spokesperson, Hong Lei, said at a press conference on May 17 that the two sides have agreed to explore effective means of making their financing cooperation more flexible, but he gave no specifics.

中國發言人洪磊在5月17日的發佈會上表示，雙方都同意探索有效的途徑來使得融資合作更加靈活，但是他並沒透露更多的具體信息。

Financing cooperation is a commercial venture between financial institutions and companies belonging to two sides. Funds have already been used for economic and social development programs in Venezuela, as well as cooperation projects between China and Venezuela, creating tangible benefits for both sides, said Hong.

融資合作是一項雙方金融機構和公司之間的商業投資。洪磊表示，爲了給雙方創造實實在在的利益，資金已經用於委內瑞拉的經濟和社會發展項目，以及中委之間的合作項目。

Given the change in global oil prices, the two sides agreed to explore effective means of enhancing the flexibility of a bilateral financing cooperation, according to Hong.

據洪磊所說，鑑於目前國際油價的改變，雙方同意探索增進雙邊融資合作的靈活性的有效途徑。

China has lent some $50 billion to Venezuela over the last decade, but Venezuela—deep in economic crisis in for the past several years—has been unable to pay China back. The Financial Times reported in October 2014 that China has already extended loans to Venezuela and could continue to extend them indefinitely.

中國在過去十年中已經向委內瑞拉借款500億美元，委內瑞拉在過去幾年中一直深陷經濟危機，並無力償還中國。金融時報2014年10月曾經報道，中國已經向委內瑞拉延長貸款並會無限地繼續延長下去。

Venezuelan President Maduro declared on May 13 that the state of economic emergency started earlier this year will be extended for at least another 60 days. He believes that the country will remain in a state of emergency for the rest of 2016 and possibly all of 2017.

委內瑞拉總統馬杜羅於5月13日聲明，於今年早些時候開始的國家經濟緊急情況將會再持續至少60天。他認爲，委內瑞拉會在2016年接下來的日子甚至可能是2017年都處於緊急狀態中。

Although oil prices rebounded slightly in recent months, they cannot rescue the Venezuelan economy. The IMF predicted that the country's GDP will shrink by 8 percent in 2016 and 12 percent in 2017. The CPI was expected to reach 720 percent, or five times the official figure.

雖然油價在最近幾個月有小幅回彈，但這也無法拯救委內瑞拉的經濟。國際貨幣基金組織預測委內瑞拉2016年的GDP將會縮水8個百分點，2017年將縮水12個百分點。消費者價格指數預估會達到720%，或者說是官方數據的5倍。

Venezuela is in the middle of a deep economic recession. The country is facing a shortage of food and electricity, which Maduro's opposition has attributed to the president's poor management. Nevertheless, Maduro insists that he will remain in office until his term expires in 2019.

委內瑞拉正處於嚴重的經濟衰退中。整個國家面臨着食物和電力的短缺，馬杜羅的反對派將這一切都歸罪於總統的管理不善。儘管如此，馬杜羅堅稱，他會完成任期直到2019年卸任。