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CARACAS, Venezuela, April 20 2015 – Venezuela has received $5bn in financing from China, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro says.

The money was for “development”, he said on Sunday, but gave no details.

The announcement comes three months after Maduro travelled to China – a major investor in the region.

Venezuela is suffering from an acute economic crisis, as the price of its main export, oil, has almost halved over a year. The opposition accuses the government of mismanagement.

Maduro visited Beijing in January and said at the time that China would invest more than $20bn in Venezuela.

He did not make clear in Sunday’s announcement if the $5bn was part of that larger sum.