China's gold panda-adjacent bullion program expanded significantly through the mid-1980s, but the Lunar series operated on a separate mandate — issued specifically for the collector and export market rather than domestic circulation. The 1987 rabbit issue was produced at relatively low mintage, as the People's Bank had not yet calibrated international demand for the series with any precision.
The .917 fineness places it closer to traditional 22-karat coinage than the .999 fine standards the program would later favor.
China's gold panda-adjacent bullion program expanded significantly through the mid-1980s, but the Lunar series operated on a separate mandate — issued specifically for the collector and export market rather than domestic circulation. The 1987 rabbit issue was produced at relatively low mintage, as the People's Bank had not yet calibrated international demand for the series with any precision.
The .917 fineness places it closer to traditional 22-karat coinage than the .999 fine standards the program would later favor.