Overview
- Thousands attended the final reserved viewing at Ueno on Sunday, with 4,400 slots and 24.6 times as many applicants, according to Tokyo officials.
- Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei are scheduled to depart Tuesday and arrive at a facility in China the following day.
- Under China's panda-loan program, Beijing retains ownership of the animals and any cubs born abroad, including the twins.
- An economics professor estimates the Ueno area could lose about 20 billion yen ($128 million) in annual activity without pandas.
- Prospects for replacements remain uncertain as ties strain over Taiwan-related remarks by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and other diplomatic frictions, following the return of four Wakayama pandas last June.