links for 2009-11-27

A collection of links related to the Dubai financial debacle

In the years of the boom, Dubai set about building with an ambition that would have made even Ozymandias blush.

The Dubai government’s decision to postpone repayments on $3.5bn in Dubai World debts – seen by investors as the litmus test of the emirate’s creditworthiness – is the clearest sign yet of the dire state of its economy. Dubai’s fanciful island reclamation, a doubtful investment in an era of rising sea levels, was just one of the gambits that ushered this tiny emirate into the world’s consciousness.

Japanese Finance Minister Hirohisa Fujii said he may contact U.S. and European officials to act on currencies, amid concern the yen’s surge to a 14-year high will hamper the economic recovery.