The profitability of pandas

Monday, 5th December 2011, 2:46pm

China has said it’s unwilling to invest in the EFSF, the eurozone bailout fund. Instead, it appears to be pouring pandas into Europe. After conveying Sweetie and Sunshine to Edinburgh over the weekend, Beijing will deliver two more pandas to France early next year. With the black-and-white creatures already in Germany, Spain and Austria, it looks like there could be more European countries being offered pandas than Asian ones.

And why not? Pandas are enormously profitable for Beijing, especially in terms of soft power. It’s an investment that’s guaranteed to pay, unlike putting money in truly bearish eurozone bonds. Edinburgh Zoo, as part of its 10-year loan agreement, will hand China $1 million a year, 90 per cent of this meant for conservation and research. But it’s not hard cash the Middle Kingdom is really after, of course. It’s a warm and fuzzy image.

What could be more useful for a nation regularly accused of human rights violations, and which executes more people a year than the rest of the world combined, than having these cuddly mammals as ambassadors? As Beijing demonstrated with its awkward PR blitz in Times Square earlier this year — it played a video featuring the smiling faces of Jackie Chan, Yao Ming and John Woo in a continuous loop, to the bafflement of New Yorkers — it’s rather desperate to be loved. With many nations, unfairly or no, fearing a harsh and dominating resurgent China, pandas help put forward a friendly face. They’re even vegetarian.

There’s quite a lot in the Sweetie-Sunshine deal for Scotland too. Again, perhaps not in cold monetary terms — Edinburgh Zoo, besides the $1 million a year to China, will also have to cough up £70,000 annually for bamboo shoots; it’s not clear yet if increased zoo ticket sales will cover the costs. But there’ll probably be peripheral trade returns for Scotland as a whole, as deputy first minister Nicola Sturgeon acknowledged in a statement that placed commerce first: ‘Scotland's relationship with China is hugely important and the pandas represent a fantastic opportunity to deepen our business, cultural and diplomatic ties,’ she said.

Chinese demand for Scottish salmon has leapt after Beijing started allowing seafood to be sent directly from Scotland. The Chinese are increasingly downing Scotch — one British export that’s actually been soaring. Scotland has also been busy courting Chinese tourists, especially golfers. Scotland and China will probably deepen their links in energy technology and Alex Salmond will visit Beijing in December.

This is all attributable to a variety of factors, obviously, and not just the pandas. But the big bears don't hurt.