Nabowla, Australia

WHEN Chinese President Xi Jinping stepped onto the airport tarmac in Australia's smallest state of Tasmania last November, he was presented with a purple-coloured fluffy toy called Bobbie.

The welcome gift he received - stuffed with lavender and wheat - was not in the shape of the southern island's iconic Tasmanian devil, but instead a teddy bear that has captured the hearts and wallets of Chinese consumers.