For China, this is a pretty good deal. They get the money and it's also a nice cuddly symbol for an authoritarian state to have. The species was reclassified as vulnerable up from endangered in recent years. But I don't think this is really a big issue for China-American relations.
Perhaps the only surprising thing about the former president’s arraignment was that it was not followed by big demonstrations—but he did take to the airwaves to seethe. A global rice crisis is brewing; the world’s most important crop is fuelling both climate change and diabetes. And what connects leased pandas in America and Chinese nationalists’ anger.
For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, try a free 30-day digital subscription by going to www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer