Wen’s remarks, reported by the official Xinhua news agency, built on comments he made during German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s recent visit to China, when he said Beijing was considering increasing its participation in rescue funds to address the European debt crisis.

This time, Wen urged skeptical Chinese citizens to understand that supporting Europe was in their own benefit

“Now Europe is facing a debt crisis and we must consider relations with Europe strategically to protect our national interests,” Wen said while visiting the export-dependent southern Chinese province of Guangdong on Saturday, said Xinhua.

China, with its $3.2 trillion worth foreign exchange reserves, is often seen as a potential source for funds needed to bail out some European governments.

The Chinese premier’s latest comments on the euro crisis again did not include any specific commitments to European economies. But he stressed the stake that China holds in defusing the euro crisis.

“On the one hand, our biggest export market is Europe,” said Wen. “On the other hand, Europe is our biggest source for importing technology. From this perspective, helping to stabilize European markets in fact amounts to helping ourselves. We must make all quarters of society understand this point.”

At a joint media briefing in Beijing with Merkel on Thursday, Wen said China was studying how it might lend Europe further support.

“China is also considering increasing its participation in the solution of the European debt crisis through the channels of the EFSF and ESM,” Wen said at that briefing.

The ESM, a 500-billion-euro ($650 billion) permanent bailout fund due to become operational in July, is expected to replace the EFSF, a temporary fund that has been used to bail out Ireland and Portugal and will help in the second Greek package.

China has repeatedly said it supports a stable euro,Discount Juicy Couture jewelry, and according to most estimates, China has about a quarter of its foreign exchange reserves in euro assets.

But Beijing has consistently been reluctant to make specific promises about any contributions to the rescue funds.

China’s exports to advanced economies, including Europe, have been hit by their continued woes, and Wen said his country’s manufacturers would have to adapt and open up new markets. He also hinted that more support might come.

“Import and export policy must maintain overall stability,” said Wen in a discussion with Guangdong manufacturers, according to Xinhua.

“If there must be adjustments, it should be more in the form of encouragement than restrictions,” said Wen.

(Reporting by Chris Buckley; Editing by Nick Macfie)

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President Barack Obama’s new plan to force colleges and universities to contain tuition or face losing federal dollars is raising alarm among education leaders who worry about the threat of government overreach. Particularly sharp words came from the presidents of public universities; they’re already frustrated by increasing state budget cuts.

The reality, said Illinois State’s Al Bowman, is that simple changes cannot easily overcome deficits at many public schools. He said he was happy to hear Obama, in a speech Friday at the University of Michigan, urge state-level support of public universities. But, Bowman said, given the decreases in state aid, tying federal support to tuition prices is a product of fuzzy math.

Illinois has lowered public support for higher education by about one-third over the past decade when adjusted for inflation. Illinois State, with 21,000 students, has raised tuition almost 47 percent since 2007, from $6,150 a year for an in-state undergraduate student to $9,030.

“Most people, including the president, assume if universities were simply more efficient they would be able to operate with much smaller state subsidies, and I believe there are certainly efficiency gains that can be realized,” Bowman said. “But they pale in comparison to the loss in state support.”

Bowman said the undergraduate experience can be made cheaper, but there are trade-offs.

“You could hire mostly part-time, adjunct faculty. You could teach in much larger lecture halls, but the things that would allow you achieve the greatest levels of efficiency would dilute the product and would make it something I wouldn’t be willing to be part of,” he said.

At Washington, President Mike Young said Obama showed he did not understand how the budgets of public universities work.

Young said the total cost to educate college students in his state, which is paid for by both tuition and state government dollars, has gone down because of efficiencies on campus. While universities are tightening costs, the state is cutting their subsidies and authorizing tuition increases to make up for the loss.

“They really should know better,” Young said. “This really is political theater of the worst sort.”

Obama’s plan would need approval by Congress, a hard sell in an atmosphere of partisan gridlock.

In his State of the Union address Tuesday, Obama described meeting with university presidents who explained how some schools curtailed costs through technology and redesigning courses to help students finish more quickly. He said more schools need to take such steps.

Obama said at Michigan that higher education has become an imperative for success in America, but the cost has grown unrealistic for too many families and the debt burden unbearable. He said states should properly fund colleges and universities.

“We are putting colleges on notice,” Obama told an arena packed with cheering students. “You can’t assume that you’ll just jack up tuition every single year. If you can’t stop tuition from going up, then the funding you get from taxpayers each year will go down.”

Obama is targeting only a small part of the financial aid picture: the $3 billion known as campus-based aid that flows through college administrators to students. He is proposing to increase that amount to $10 billion and change how it is distributed to reward schools that hold down costs and ensure that more poor students complete their education.

The bulk of the more than $140 billion in federal grants and loans goes directly to students and would not be affected.

The average in-state tuition and fees at four-year public colleges this school year rose 8.3 percent and with room and board now exceed $17,000 a year, according to the College Board.

Rising tuition costs have been attributed to a variety of factors, among them a decline in state dollars and competition for the best facilities and professors. Critics say some higher education institutions are attempting to wait out the economic downturn and have been too reluctant to make large-scale changes that would cut costs such as offering three-year degree programs.

The federal government’s leverage to take on the rising cost of college is limited because higher education is decentralized, with most student aid following the student.

The response to Obama’s plan wasn’t all negative. Many university presidents said they welcome a conversation about making college more affordable and efficient.

In Missouri, where Gov. Jay Nixon has proposed a 12.5 percent funding cut for higher education in the coming fiscal year,wholesale Ralph Lauren t-shirts, Obama’s proposal could put even more pressure on public colleges and universities to limit tuition increases. By state law, schools must limit such increases to the annual inflation rate unless they receive permission for larger ones. Nixon has warned schools that he doesn’t want to see a tuition increase of more than 3 percent, the latest Consumer Price Index increase.

“The president’s message isn’t inconsistent with the agenda that we’ve been pursuing here in Missouri,” said Paul Wagner, deputy commissioner of the state Department of Higher Education. “It’s good to see him put the focus on the same things.”

Obama also wants to create a “Race to the Top” competition in higher education similar to the one his administration used on lower grades. He wants to encourage states to make better use of higher education dollars in exchange for $1 billion in prize money.

Obama is also pushing for more tools to help students determine which colleges and universities have the best value.

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Online:

White House: http://tinyurl.com/75yrqyh

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Associated Press writers Ben Feller and Julie Pace in Washington, Jim Kuhnhenn and David Runk in Ann Arbor, Mich., David Mercer in Champaign, Ill., Alan Zagier in Columbia, Mo., Alex Dominguez in Baltimore, Dorie Turner in Atlanta, and Donna Gordon Blankinship in Seattle contributed to this report.

The survey was conducted between late June and July on multinationals based in Europe, North America and Asia.

In May, a survey by the European Union Chamber of Commerce showed a similar rise in corporate concern over IP protection, although 57 percent of respondents said China was of growing importance to their business, up from 40 percent in 2010.

The EIU survey also showed that only a quarter of larger multinational companies felt they had superior technology or stronger branding amid increasing competition for talent with local companies.

IP RIGHTS VIOLATIONS

But those that saw China as “critical to global strategy” fell to 37 percent, from 53 percent in a similar survey in 2004.

Of the 70 companies it surveyed that disclosed China revenue, the EIU said only 10 — including Mead Johnson Nutrition Co (MJN.N), BHP Billiton Ltd (BHP.AX) (BLT.L), Yum Brands Inc (YUM.N) and Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD.N) — had China sales that made up more than 20 percent of global income.

In second paragraph corrects number of survey respondents to 328 not 238, and fixes spelling of Economist Intelligence Unit.

Close to half of 328 companies that took part in the survey conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) said they had higher expectations for China following the 2008/09 global financial crisis, with 17 percent saying they expected it to become their top market within five years.

(Reporting by Kazunori Takada; Editing by Chris Lewis and Muralikumar Anantharaman)

Nearly half said they were concerned that they would have to give up IP in exchange for market access, while 46 percent said the regulatory environment would have a significant impact on their China strategy over the next five years.

China has been repeatedly criticized for widespread violations of IP rights, with copies of expensive brands of watches, bags and computer software still widely available.

SHANGHAI (Reuters) Multinational companies operating in China are placing less importance on the world’s second-biggest economy amid rising local competition and concern over intellectual property (IP) rights, a survey showed on Wednesday.

“I think this represents a degree of caution,” Laurel West, Asia director of industrial and management research at EIU, told a news conference. EIU is a sister company of The Economist magazine.

She said the reading was also a reflection of companies placing more focus on other emerging markets, such as Brazil, India, Indonesia and Vietnam, as well as concern over Chinese government policies.

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) Seven months after “Mars Needs Moms” led to questions about the future of motion-capture animation, Steven Spielberg is showing that audiences might not have totally rejected the technique after all.

“I think Herge would be smiling with the work they accomplished with the character in the film,” Bruer said.

In Spain, it grossed $6.7 million on 798 screens — 50 percent of the country’s entire market and nearly 10 times as much as what that nation’s No. 2 film grossed. In Germany, “Tintin” took $4.6 million on 847 screens.

In “Tintin,” which Spielberg directed and Peter Jackson produced, young adventurer Tintin and his friend Capt. Haddock search for a sunken treasure ship that was commanded by one of Haddock’s ancestors.

This weekend alone, the movie grossed $2.1 million from 169 screens in Herge’s home nation, $1.9 million from 297 screens in Sweden, $1.8 million from 174 screens in Switzerland, $1.6 million on 221 screens in Denmark and $1.3 million on 250 screens in Holland and $1.3 million in Italy.

Bruer said he expects the strong international reaction will translate to big audiences when it opens in the United States on December 21. Paramount is handling the film’s domestic release.

Spielberg’s “The Adventures of Tintin” is off to a promising start at the interational box office, opening to $55.8 million abroad this weekend. It was No. 1 in 17 out of the 19 territories it debuted in.

He noted that the character of Tintin, based on a comic book by Belgian artist Georges Remi (who used the pen name Herge), is better known in Western Europe than in the United States.

In France, where “Tintin” enjoyed the biggest opening ever for an original, non-sequel Hollywood film, the movie took in $21.5 million on 935 screens.

“You couldn’t ask for a film that’s more immersive and incredible to look at than ‘Tintin,’” said Rory Bruer, president of worldwide distribution at Sony, which shares international distribution rights with Paramount Pictures International. “There’s no doubt about it. It just draws you into it, and it just is quite an amazing feat visually. Spectacular, actually.”

By contrast, “Mars Needs Moms” was such a flop that Disney shut down its motion-capture animation division, which was run by the movie’s producer, Robert Zemeckis. And it canceled Zemeckis’ plan to make a motion-capture version of The Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine.”

The movie enjoyed strong numbers across Europe: It was No. 1 in the U.K., where it grossed $10.7 million.

Reaction was so negative, in fact, that the New York Times said the film “may lead to the end for the Zemeckis style of motion-capture filmmaking, which has proven increasingly unpopular with audiences.”

“The press has been very good, of course, and it’s going to make it resonate in the U.S. even that much more,” Bruer said.

Chinese designers have been front and centre at Hong Kong Fashion Week for Fall/Winter 2012, which ends on Thursday, taking advantage of the nearly 2,000 exhibitors from 26 countries and regions to make their mark.

“China’s been the clothing factory of the world for some time,” said Chinese designer Qi Gang, whose creations featured bright colors, sequins, fur and feathers.

“But as our economy develops, we are also becoming a country of famous brands, big brands. This trend is unstoppable,” he told Reuters TV.

Qi, who describes his styles as “sexy and extravagant,” is profiting from the growing affluence of his vast nation, whose economic growth has been hit by a sluggish global economy but still posted annual growth of 8.9 percent in the fourth quarter.

His SCfashion label saw turnover of $47 million last year, and his chain of stores across the mainland rose to 40 from 25.

Qi joins a growing host of Chinese designers including Uma Wang, Qiu Hao and Ma Ke, whose “exception” label is known as the closest thing China has to its own luxury brand.

“Chinese designers are definitely marking their territory,” said Craig Lawrence, a U.K.-based knitwear designer, who said that China is likely to benefit from moves by Western fashion capitals, such as Paris, to become more global.

“They’re putting their stamp down on the international platform because (this) Fashion Extravaganza is such a mix of international people and there’s so much press from around the world it helps create a buzz.”

But while international brands still dominate the luxury markets, local brands have a home advantage, said fashion researcher Angelia Teo, content director, Asia-Pacific, WGSN.

“A lot of the Chinese designers will find a lot of satisfaction and a lot of return if they base their businesses on a domestic standpoint, simply because there is such an appetite for it,” she added, noting that local shoppers are developing a more sophisticated sense of style.

“We start to see the Chinese become more nationalistic in the way they purchase items. So they want to buy something that’s Chinese, they want to buy a design aesthetic they’ve grown up with. The Chinese designers are meeting that need.”

(Reporting by Tessa Dunlop at Reuters TV; editing by Elaine Lies and Paul Casciato)

The 76-year-old singer underwent total knee replacement surgery in the fall and suffered from pneumonia.

Daughter Patsy Lynn Russell tells The Associated Press that Lynn’s doctor thought she needed a couple more weeks of physical therapy to return to top form. Russell says her mother has been busy rehearsing with her band and preparing for her 2012 tour.

According to Russell, Lynn said she is feeling so good, she “might even put her dancing jig back in the show.”

Lynn was scheduled to perform in Ashland, Ky, and Durham,Cheap Ed hardy underwear, N.C., this weekend. Those shows will now take place in February and April, respectively. Lynn’s next gig is Jan. 21 in Miami, Okla.

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Online: http://www.lorettalynn.com

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For the latest country music news from The Associated Press, follow http://www.twitter.com/AP_Country

Officials from the Yong Long factory in the southern manufacturing city of Dongguan appeared to have fled when government regulators entered the premises on Wednesday, a local government spokesperson said.

Nobody from the factory was immediately available to comment on Thursday.

Officials were investigating media reports the factory had mixed cottonseed oil and flavor-enhanced soybean oil and marketed it as peanut oil, according to a statement from the government of Zhongtang,Wholesale Ed hardy belts, a town in Dongguan.

Yong Long factory produces about four tons of cooking oil daily, supplying Pearl River Delta cities including Dongguan, Foshan, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported on Thursday, citing documents found at the factory.

The newspaper said the factory sold to Chinese food brands such as Master Kong, a household name in the instant noodle industry. It said the adulterated oil could possibly harm human reproductive cells but gave no other details.

China has struggled to rein in widespread health safety violations in its vast food processing sector. There have been several scandals involving cooking oil safety in recent years.

Police arrested 52 people at the end of last year in the southern province of Jiangxi for selling more than 2,000 tons of cooking oil dredged up from restaurant gutters.

Since July 2011, Chinese courts have sentenced at least a dozen people to jail, including one person who received a suspended death sentence, for their roles in producing or selling pork tainted with toxic chemicals.

In 2008, at least six children died and nearly 300,000 fell ill from drinking milk laced with melamine powder, an industrial compound added to milk to give misleadingly high results in protein tests.

Officials from the Yong Long factory in the southern manufacturing city of Dongguan appeared to have fled when government regulators entered the premises on Wednesday, a local government spokesperson said.

Nobody from the factory was immediately available to comment on Thursday.

Officials were investigating media reports the factory had mixed cottonseed oil and flavor-enhanced soybean oil and marketed it as peanut oil, according to a statement from the government of Zhongtang, a town in Dongguan.

Yong Long factory produces about four tons of cooking oil daily, supplying Pearl River Delta cities including Dongguan, Foshan, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported on Thursday, citing documents found at the factory.

The newspaper said the factory sold to Chinese food brands such as Master Kong,wholesale Ed hardy shoes, a household name in the instant noodle industry. It said the adulterated oil could possibly harm human reproductive cells but gave no other details.

China has struggled to rein in widespread health safety violations in its vast food processing sector. There have been several scandals involving cooking oil safety in recent years.

Police arrested 52 people at the end of last year in the southern province of Jiangxi for selling more than 2,000 tons of cooking oil dredged up from restaurant gutters.

Since July 2011, Chinese courts have sentenced at least a dozen people to jail, including one person who received a suspended death sentence, for their roles in producing or selling pork tainted with toxic chemicals.

In 2008, at least six children died and nearly 300,000 fell ill from drinking milk laced with melamine powder, an industrial compound added to milk to give misleadingly high results in protein tests.