The Chinese government rewards its major trading partners in a special way: with pandas. This is not a joke, but an actual fact. These sweet animals are in fact borrowed to other nations. Pandas are a special sign of friendship, and for each pair borrowed, Beijing receives $1 million annually.
Among millions of funny facts, this one seems even more interesting, as it is a path that shows the things in which the Chinese government is interested. So, wherever pandas go, there will be the state’s interests. And Beijing seeks technology and energy resources.
Actually Chinese people love the giant panda, a beautiful and peaceful animal, bamboo-eating and belong to some bear family. Moreover its population is less and categorized as its customary forest habitat scattered in southwest China’s mountainous nearby.
Media reports have shown that Scotland received two bears in 2011, after they close a partnership to provide petrochemical technology. France and Canada were rewarded in the same way, after they both signed contracts to supply China with uranium. And the same prize went to Australia, which is a country with huge reserves of uranium. All these contracts worth several billion dollars provide China the resources to achieve its energy goals.
Moreover, Pandas are used in trade with Asian countries such as Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia. Usually, this lovely animals are borrowed for a period of ten years, but this period can be extended. And all the money that China receives from the host countries invest in the conservation of the species. This happens because another fact is that taking care of one single panda can be very expensive. For example, keeping a panda in a zoo costs five times more than taking care of an elephant, which is considered the next most expensive animal.
Panda pups born in captivity are also a good source of income, as Beijing collects $200,000 for each animal. However, when all the pups turn four years old, they have to return to China.
Among the real funny facts about pandas, is the one that says that giant pandas are believed to be national treasures in China. Therefore, if a person does something to cause the death of a panda, that person is forced by the government to pay $500,000.
Data shows that ten years ago, there lived about 2,000 pandas, and China is the owner of all the giant pandas in the world.