In Qatar, the world's biggest oil producers have failed to reach an agreement at a meeting seeking to freeze output and reassure markets that a recent recovery in prices can be sustained. Yesterday's talks in Qatar's capital Doha saw the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and, unusually, other producers, trying to agree that average daily crude oil production in the coming months would not exceed levels recorded in January. Qatari Energy Minister Mohammed Saleh al-Sada said after six hours of negotiations that consultations would continue between the parties until an OPEC meeting in June. The run-up to the summit saw months of disagreements about the impact any freeze would have on individual OPEC members.Iran, though, did not send a delegation to the meeting, saying it would not accept proposals to cap its production until it recovered a similar market share to that which it held before the sanctions were imposed. Qatar's government currently holds the OPEC presidency.