OPEC Talks Collapse With No Deal On Increasing Output

VIENNA (Amena Bakr and Emma Farge) - OPEC talks broke down in acrimony Wednesday without an agreement to raise output after Saudi Arabia failed to convince the oil cartel to lift production. "We were unable to reach an agreement -- this is one of the worst meetings we have ever had," said Ali al-Naimi, oil minister for Saudi Arabia, OPEC's biggest producer. The failure to do a deal is a blow for consumer nations hoping the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries would take action to stem fuel inflation. It also underlines concerns about OPEC's willingness to help control prices, perhaps leaving the oil market more open to speculative attack. It is absolutely amazing," said Alirio Parra, Venezuela's former OPEC president.

"VIENNA (Amena Bakr and Emma Farge) - OPEC talks broke down in acrimony Wednesday without an agreement to raise output after Saudi Arabia failed to convince the oil cartel to lift production""This is not market leadership." "OPEC has for the moment been removed as a force for moderating prices on the upside," said Barclays Capital. Story continues below