Blue Suite 21

An original copy of Edgar Allan Poe's first book, Tamerlane and Other Poems, sold for $662,500 US ($696,750 Cdn) in New York on Friday, smashing the previous record price for American literature.

The previous record is believed to be $250,000 US for a copy of the same book sold nearly two decades ago.

Poe published Tamerlane when he was just 18, in 1827, and only 40 or 50 copies were printed.

Only 12 first editions survive of the 40-page collection of poetry, which does not credit the author by name but is written by “a Bostonian.” Poe was born in Boston.

The book is stained and frayed but was still expected to sell for over $500,000 US at Christie’s auction house in New York.

The Poe work was part of the collection of former TV executive William Self, which also includes rare books by Mark Twain, Jane Austen and Charles Dickens.

He decided to sell the books after the death of his wife and fellow book lover, Peggy.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — As world markets absorbed the shock of Dubai's debt crisis, the ruler of the once-booming city-state left town for an important meeting in a desert palace. His hosts: the leaders of neighboring Abu Dhabi whose balance sheets are flush with oil revenue.

It's not known what promises were made inside the halls in Al Ain during the parade of visitors for an important Islamic feast day on Friday. But their new relationship is clear. Abu Dhabi has the cash and cachet to be Dubai's white knight — in a Gulf version of a too-big-to-fail bailout or to help calm markets with promises to intervene if Dubai's fiscal mess deepens.

The direction Abu Dhabi takes will likely set the tone for the coming week as analysts try to sort out what banks and institutions have the most at stake in the money crunch — which has suddenly shifted Dubai's image from a desert dream factory of indoor ski slopes and a "seven-star" hotel to a reckless spender sideswiped by the recession and unable to pay its bills.

Just this month, Dubai's ruler, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, assured international investors that all was well with Dubai's finances and told media critics to "shut up."

"Depleting market confidence in Dubai carries serious risks for Abu Dhabi," said Hani Sabra of Eurasia Group, a U.S.-based research firm that assesses political risk for foreign investors in Dubai and the Gulf.

"Differences between the two city-states remain on how to approach the economy and the financial crisis," Sabra added. "But now Abu Dhabi is obviously the more dominant emirate."

Dubai's empty pockets — mostly drained by collapsing real estate prices and overambitious development plans — touched off panic selling across world markets on fears that the reckoning from the global recession is not over.

In a surprise announcement Wednesday, Dubai said it seeks a six-month delay in paying creditors on nearly $60 billion in debt held by its main development arm, Dubai World, whose holdings range from port operations around the world, Dubai's iconic palm-shaped island and the luxury retailer Barneys New York. The next tranche was a $3.52 billion bond due Dec. 14 by Dubai World's troubled real estate division, Nakheel.

On Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average suffered its biggest drop in nearly a month — closing down 154.48, or 1.5 percent, to 10,309.92, in a shorted trading day because of the Thanksgiving break. Asian exchanges fell sharply for a second day, but European markets bounced back on confidence the Dubai damage would not spread to other Gulf economies.

Dubai and other Middle East financial markets reopen Monday after an Islamic holiday.

But much attention will remain on Abu Dhabi's response. It stepped in earlier this year with a $10 billion bailout for Dubai when the first blast of the recession hit. Dubai ruler Sheik Mohammed has stressed the close bonds between the two most powerful emirates in the UAE, which celebrates its national day on Wednesday and offers a perfect forum to display unity.

An editorial in The National newspaper — which is bankrolled by Abu Dhabi and closely reflects the opinions of its rulers — said Dubai's infrastructure is sound and pointed out General Motors' revival after receiving a U.S.-backed bailout in comments that suggested an unchecked Dubai meltdown could harm the entire country.

"Confidence is a fragile commodity," said the Friday editorial.

Yet Abu Dhabi's largesse may be reaching some limits. On the same day that Dubai announced its debt payment "standstill," two Abu Dhabi-controlled banks bought $5 billion in Dubai bonds for a stopgap cash infusion, but went no further.

"I guess Abu Dhabi is saying there will be no blank check for Dubai," said Jane Kinninmont, a London-based specialist on Gulf economies at the Economist Intelligence Unit.

What Abu Dhabi could get for its money, however, is greater long-term influence over Dubai's development policies. That would essentially mean giving the wealthy and more conservative rulers in the UAE's capital the task of trying to rein in Dubai after years of living beyond its means.

Dubai crash-landed about a year ago as the global economic downturn ended a sizzling property boom, which saw prices skyrocket and investors lining up for new projects. The state-backed Dubai World led the charge with a catalog brimming with ever-bigger ideas and the bold motto: "The sun never sets on Dubai World."

Some were completed before the bubble burst, such as the Palm Jumeirah island that included a Hollywood A-list opening of the Atlantis resort in November 2008. But dozens of major projects, including entire mini-cities in the desert, have been shelved.

Abu Dhabi has moved ahead with more caution — comfortable in the fact it has vast oil wealth that Dubai does not enjoy.

Its rulers have concentrated on what they see as attempts to gain global stature as a hub for culture and innovation: funding an alternative energy research center and building satellite museums for the Louvre and Guggenheim. The Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund is constantly on the hunt for new investments, including U.S. companies such as Citigroup Inc.

Abu Dhabi's strategists are expected to dig deeper into Dubai World's books before deciding their next move, analysts say.

Dubai officials said plans to restructure Dubai World will not include its profitable ports management division, DP World, which has a presence in nearly 50 facilities around the world. The main retooling will be to Dubai World's battered real estate units, led by Nakheel.

A report from Goldman Sachs said the lenders HSBC Holdings PLC and Standard Chartered PLC could have the most exposure to Dubai debt, but the potential credit losses appeared relatively small. The deeper risks could directly hit Emirates' banks and investment firms.

Christopher Davidson, an expert in Emirate affairs at Britain's Durham University, wondered if Abu Dhabi wanted to become too deeply involved in lifting Dubai from its fiscal wreckage.

"There is no point throwing good money into Dubai's black holes," Davidson said. "These are mistakes of Sheik Mohammed and he needs to deal with them."

Associated Press Writer Barbara Surk contributed to this report.

BOGOTA — Four soldiers from Venezuela's National Guard captured in Colombian territory will be repatriated in a bid to ease tensions between the South American neighbors, President Alvaro Uribe's government said Saturday.

The Colombian navy intercepted the men Friday in El Aceitico along the border, according to a statement by Colombia's DAS intelligence agency. It said they were traveling in a boat, inside which Venezuelan military uniforms were found.

Long-standing tensions have worsened in recent months over Colombia's agreement to give the U.S. military more access to its bases — a deal that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez calls a threat to his country.

Chavez ordered his military last weekend to prepare for possible war with Colombia in case the U.S. attempts to provoke one.

There also have been several shootings and slayings the past few weeks along the Venezuela-Colombia border.

Uribe said Saturday that the detained Venezuelan soldiers will be sent home.

"They should carry a message. And the message is that here, there is affection for the brother people of Venezuela," Uribe said.

The DAS statement said Colombia hopes Venezuela will respond in kind by promptly returning a detective who was detained by Venezuelan authorities while on vacation.

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea's central bank left its key interest rate at a record low for the ninth straight month Thursday, pledging to maintain low borrowing rates to help extend a recovery in Asia's fourth-largest economy.

The Bank of Korea decision to keep the benchmark seven-day repurchase rate at 2 percent came at a monthly policy meeting and was in line with expectations.

The bank's monetary policy committee said in a statement that it will stick to its "accommodative policy stance for the time being with an emphasis on sustaining the recovery of economic activity." The wording was broadly similar to last month's statement.

South Korea's economic recovery, a rise in housing prices and a decision last month by Australia's central bank to lift rates had created expectations the Bank of Korea might hike borrowing costs at its October meeting.

However, the bank at the time largely doused speculation an increase would come before the end of the year by offering no fundamental change in wording to its policy statement.

Central banks often flag upcoming policy changes by altering their statements to give investors and markets ample understanding of their motives and time to prepare.

Goldman Sachs' economist Kwon Goohoon said in a report Thursday a rate hike will probably come in the first three months of 2010 and any increases are "likely to be gradual and moderate."

The central bank slashed the rate six times since more than a year ago to help battle the effects of the global financial crisis. Declines in global consumer demand amid the world slowdown hit South Korean exporters.

The South Korean economy has now fought back from its worst slowdown since the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis on a rebound in exports and production.

South Korea recorded three straight quarters of growth since contracting 5.1 percent in the final three months of 2008. It grew 2.9 percent in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, the strongest quarterly performance in more than seven years.

Consumer and business confidence are both at seven-year highs and unemployment in October fell to 3.2 percent, the lowest level in 11 months. The jobless rate peaked at a three-year high of 4 percent in March.

The benchmark Kospi stock index fell 1.4 percent to close Thursday at 1,572.73, while the South Korean won rose marginally against the dollar to close at 1,157.30, the highest finish in nearly a month.

Alaistair Chan, an economist with Moody`s.com in Sydney, Australia, said in a report that any rate hike will be delayed "by a number of months."

He cited tightened restrictions on mortgage lending, opposition to higher rates by the finance ministry and the central bank policy committee's own assessment Thursday that "the upward trend in real-estate prices appears to have faltered."

SAN FRANCISCO — Research In Motion (RIM) on Monday announced it is making Blackberry devices friendlier to game applications, as the business-oriented smartphones try to show a more playful side.

The Canada-based mobile phone maker is enhancing Blackberry software to make it simpler for outside developers to craft 3D games and other fun programs for the devices.

"We are making it easier than ever for developers, hobbyists and content providers to build graphic-rich experiences for BlackBerry smartphones," said RIM platform senior vice president Alan Brenner.

"These new features will help drive a multitude of engaging themes, games and applications for BlackBerry smartphone users."

The move comes as RIM faces competition from Apple iPhones and growing ranks of smartphones based on Google-backed Android software.

IPhones have become a hot platform for mobile videogames and Android software frees third-party developers to make programs for devices.