The profit motive has never been a comfortable bed fellow with government, either central or local, as the official blog of the University of Birmingham's Institute for Local Government Studies (INLOGOV) points out.

BBC: Midlands councils go into business to offset grant cuts

The index is compiled on a quarterly basis using official government statistics or central bank data where available.

FORBES: If Hong Kong Isn't A Housing Bubble, Then Nothing Is

"Both the state and central government have been responsible, " says an official.

CNN: A New Kind of War

KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- A Japanese aid worker who was abducted in east-central Afghanistan has been found dead, a local government official said Wednesday.

CNN: Japanese aid worker in Afghanistan found dead

The official government list of victims from this week's earthquake in central Italy reached 287 on Friday, as Italians held a mass state funeral to lay the victims to rest.

CNN: Thousands mourn Italian quake victims