China's Debt Relief Plan Under Scrutiny Amid Global Pressure.

China is under increasing pressure to offer debt relief to poor countries facing default. China has lent over $500 billion to developing countries, making it one of the world's largest creditors. The United States and other Western nations have been pressing China to allow some of those countries to restructure their debt and reduce the amount that they owe. China has insisted that other creditors and multilateral lenders absorb financial losses as part of any restructuring, bogging down a critical loan relief process. However, there were indications this week that China was prepared to make concessions that would unlock a global effort to restructure hundreds of billions of dollars of debt owed by poor countries.