'We've seen no barrier between Taiwan and mainland China for the pandas to come so far,' he said yesterday.

His comments were made a day after Taiwan's top negotiator with the mainland, Chiang Pin-kung, said some procedural details had to be sorted out before the island could import the pair.

Mr Chiang's remarks raised speculation of problems in the delivery, which was widely expected before Christmas. His deputy, Kao Koong-liang, had told the Taiwanese legislature that the pandas would reach Taipei several days before Christmas so they could make a public appearance during the Lunar New Year holiday beginning on January 25.

But Mr Hau said he expected the rare animals to arrive as soon as the necessary paperwork was cleared.

The Industrial Development Bureau had already issued an import permit, said Jason Chin Shih-chien, research officer and spokesman for Taipei Zoo.

Mr Chin said that as soon as the mainland completed the export permit and other paperwork, the pandas would be ready to be sent to Taipei Zoo, which had built a NT$320 million (HK$74 million) home for them.

To sidestep the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, which would touch on the sensitive sovereignty issue, both sides have agreed to exchange rare animals, with Taipei sending a pair of Formosan sika deer and a pair of Formosan goats to the mainland.

Mr Hau was upbeat over the tourism impact that the two giant pandas could create.

'We have estimated that the number of tourists to Taipei Zoo should increase by 1 million to 6 million annually.'

He stressed that the gift exchange would not only spur tourism but mark improvement in cross-strait relations. 'They represent a further step in cross-strait rapprochement.'

Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan, whose names together mean 'unite', are four years old. The pair were offered by President Hu Jintao as a goodwill gesture during a historic 2005 meeting with former Kuomintang chairman Lien Chan. The meeting marked reconciliation between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party after six decades of rivalry.

Mr Hau said improving cross-strait ties was also advantageous to business development in Taipei.

With daily direct charter flights in the pipeline, he expected more investments, including those from international enterprises, to be channelled to the city.

He said more Taiwanese businesspeople were likely to relocate their bases to Taipei as its flight time from Shanghai shortened to just two hours.

Taiwan and the mainland agreed to launch daily direct charter flights and direct shipping as early as next Monday after their second round of talks in Taipei last month.

They held a historic round of talks in Beijing in June for transport and tourism co-operation.