Iran urges other oil producers to freeze output after Doha debacle -- as it happened
Iran wants OPEC members to keep talking, despite Sunday's failed talks, but won't impose new sanctions on itself
- Latest: Iran won't join freeze
- Oil recovers some early losses
- Saudi and Iran can't reach a deal
- The agenda: Oil, Brazil, Brexit, steel and Greece
5.36pm BST
Stock markets recovered from an early slide in the wake of the weekend's failure by oil producers to agree an output cut, when Saudi Arabia insisted Iran should take part but the latter refusing, writes Nick Fletcher. Tony Cross, market analyst at Trustnet Direct, said:
Oil producers failed to reach a consensus over limiting production at yesterday's key meeting in Doha, leaving equities to start the week under something of a shadow, but the downside pressures are certainly looking to be remarkably short-lived.
The FTSE 100 and crude oil alike have pared earlier losses, something that could be seen as underlying just where the problem now lies regarding over supply of crude. Yes, Saudi Arabia may be threatening to ramp up output, but with demand stagnant and storage facilities running close to capacity, the argument is looking slightly academic. On top of this we have Opec set to reconvene in two months time, by which time Iran will have made some progress in terms of accelerating its production. This debate still has some distance to run and equity markets are applauding the fact it's far from over.
2.34pm BST
Wall Street has opened lower, as Doha disappointment reaches New York.
The Dow Jones industrial average has dipped by 43 points, or 0.25%, in early trading, with the falling oil price hitting energy firms.
Wall Street stocks open lower as crude oil plunges 4% on failure of producers to agree to production freeze pic.twitter.com/zqCCtZovHx
2.08pm BST
Greek prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, has met with EC vice-president Jyrki Katainen today, as efforts to break the deadlock between Greece and its lenders continue.
I had good discussion with @tsipras_eu about the concrete ways #greece can benefit from #investEU, especially #SMEs pic.twitter.com/WiG25IpjRb
The aim of the mission remains to conclude the first review of the programme as soon as possible."
2.01pm BST
The central bank of Brazil appears to have intervened to weaken the real, after seeing it jump by 1.5% against the US dollar in early trading.
The real erased all its gains pic.twitter.com/dCAngT33lr
Brazil CB effectively takes $4bn out of market via swaps. BRL now weaker on the day.
From 1.5% stronger to 1.5% weaker on the day for BRL. BCB is a buzzkill.
1.44pm BST
Oil is coming under more pressure at American investors reach their desks, pushing US and Brent crude down around 4%.
Despite Iran's absence in the meeting, expectations were high for a freeze deal to be struck, but the visible dispute between Saudi Arabia and Iran sabotaged all efforts consequently causing WTI crude to plunge more than 5%.
While realistically the effects of an output freeze would have had a minimal impact on the supply glut, even a symbolic gesture from OPEC to deal with the oversupply could have boosted optimism for future deals.
1.17pm BST
Brazil's currency has surged at the start of the American trading day, following last night's congressional vote to impeach president Dilma Rousseff.
*BRAZIL REAL CLIMBS 1.5% AFTER LAWMAKERS VOTE FOR IMPEACHMENT
The issue now moves to the Senate as the drawn-out process continues its March towards what looks like an inevitable conclusion. Brazilian stocks are now up 23% in 2016 - that's 43% up in US dollar terms - and this latest development is likely to add even more momentum to bonds, equity and the Brazilian Real.
In all likelihood we will see some profit-taking soon, as the market will start to focus on a post-Rousseff world where the economy must struggle through a deep and long recession.
12.22pm BST
Back in London, Centrica appears to have avoided a major shareholder vote over pay.
The parent company of British Gas has been criticised for handing its new boss, Iain Conn, a 3m deal, at a time when it's also cutting 3,000 workers.
Centrica chair says 85pc approval for pay report from 72pc of shareholders who voted before meeting.
Centrica shareholder John Farmer says Iain Conn is a Marc Bolland character. From a related company but not the right experience.
12.02pm BST
Iran's oil minister, Bijan Zanganeh, has also insisted that his country won't join an output freeze.
Zanganeh argues that Iran can hardly impose sanctions on itself, having only just shaken off international restrictions.
Iran not responsible for #oil mkt glut, oversupply of 2mb/d created as some producers opposed lifting of #Iran sanctions from beg: Oil Min.
#Iran won't join #oil freeze, producers have "illusion" they can get Iran to freeze output, wd amount to reimposing sanx on itself: Zanganeh
11.58am BST
Newsflash from Dubai: Iran has called for other oil producers to continue negotiating an output freeze.
"We support cooperation between OPEC and non-OPEC member countries and efforts to bring stability to the oil market, and we urge all producers to continue their negotiations," Ardebilli said.
But he also said Iran had made it clear that it wanted to regain its share of the oil market lost when it was hit by economic sanctions, and that "its position is supported by most OPEC and non-OPEC members around the world".
11.36am BST
Bloomberg have just published an inside account of how the OPEC talks floundered yesterday.
It confirms that initial optimism waned once Saudi Arabia surprised attendees by insisting that any deal had to include Iran.
In an apparent reference to Saudi Arabia, Russia's Novak said at a press conference after the talks that some countries changed their position right before the meeting after agreeing to an earlier draft.
"I thought countries that came here, came to agree and not to discuss the need of joining in of those countries that were not participating," he said. "We had been disputing today a lot, and that was because some countries from OPEC changed their positions in the morning."
This is a wonderful detail in a great story about how the Doha talks collapsed https://t.co/rWVL7X9w0L pic.twitter.com/a3SvktyC9G
11.11am BST
Get your thinking caps on - The Treasury's new analysis into the risks of Brexit has just been published.
Read HM Treasury analysis: the long-term economic impact of EU membership & the alternatives https://t.co/ABG7Hj7b3m pic.twitter.com/I1syZZKL6v
11.00am BST
The initial panic over the failure of the Doha talks may be easing, as oil recovers some of its early losses.
Brent crude is now trading around $42, down around 2.5% from Friday night. Still a chunky loss, but better than the initial 5% tumble.
Traders appear to be coming round to the understanding that although no deal came out of the weekend's Doha oil production freeze meeting, we shouldn't really have expected anything given the strong stances by Iran ('not while we ramp up post sanctions') and Saudi Arabia (not without Iran).
Steady ticking up of oil from the Asia open no surprise. Yet to find anyone today who thought the outcome was unexpected.
Oil up 3.5% since the open.
10.26am BST
George Osborne's report on the benefits of the EU is already making my head hurt.
Sneak preview of the Treasury's workings... Blimey. pic.twitter.com/wLYf5r7Ljl
10.24am BST
UK chancellor George Osborne is about to give a speech on why Britain should stay within the European Union.
He's announcing an official Treasury report which found that households would be thousands of pounds worse off if Britain leaves the EU, as growth will be slower over the
And here is how Chancellor intends to use the 4,300 figure for the Governments remain campaign: pic.twitter.com/35mVOJCBPe
It seems Osborne has STILL not published Treasury Brexit document,leaving journalists unable to test whether his claims reflect its analysis
Related: EU referendum: Osborne says Brexit will cost families 4,300 a year - Politics live
10.08am BST
Investors in Moscow have reacted badly to the lack of an oil deal.
The ruble has slumped by over 1% against the US dollar, to 67.3 from 66.4 on Friday night. The Russian stock market is also suffering, down almost 3% right now.
9.49am BST
Readers who can remember the oil price shocks of the 1970s may welcome OPEC's recent impotence over the price of crude.
In an era where market abuse is outlawed and anti-competitive businesses face hefty fines, the oil cartel feels as outdated as flares and jumpsuits.
Even I remember when oil producing countries conspiring to keep the price of oil *up* was widely regarded by sane people as a bad thing.
Iran's failure to attend had a huge impact on Doha oil talks https://t.co/c7wiKzf07Q pic.twitter.com/iyXDugYGUB
9.19am BST
Saudi Arabia and Iran have been fighting a proxy war in Yemen for months, so it's hardly surprising that they can't get on the same page over oil.
In addition, it was clearly implausible that Iranian officials would commit to freezing output at January levels, the point in which sanctions had just been lifted.
Both sides had made their stances clear, although Saudi Arabia clearly thought Tehran might come to the table at the 11th hour.
8.38am BST
The prospect of cheaper oil is pushing up shares in airlines and holiday firms; every other sector is down, though.
Unsurprisingly #oil stocks worst performers in Europe today pic.twitter.com/9SGpKtQaRS
8.30am BST
European stock markets are falling sharply at the start of trading, following oil's lead
The market had high expectations that an agreement would be forged in Doha yesterday to limit oil production. This failed to materialise and the rally we had observed for crude prices - which in turn was lending support to the broader equity market - is now quickly coming undone.
8.12am BST
Colin Smith, oil and gas analyst at City stockbroker Panmure Gordon, predicts more volatility in the crude price, now that OPEC has shown it cannot agree an output freeze.
He adds:
Given that this meeting has been three months in the making, it is surprising that it was held at all in the absence of firm commitments to strike a deal and odder still that the position of the most important player, Saudi Arabia, had not been fully firmed up in advance. Iran had always excluded itself from participation in a deal and it was not present at the Doha meeting.
The finger pointing suggests that Saudi Arabia could not bring itself to sign a deal without some sort of commitment from Iran and may have been expecting late concessions.
8.08am BST
This is oil's biggest one-day plunge since February.
8.04am BST
Several oil producers are venting their anger about the Doha failure.
Falah Alamri, Iraq's representative, says (via the FT).
"We are very very disappointed.....This will affect the [oil] price and our earnings. We wanted a deal."
#Oman #oil minister tells #Bloomberg @ElliottGotkine he's disappointed about failed agreement in #doha #DohaTalks pic.twitter.com/baae5tWqIN
8.02am BST
Analysts are largely blaming Saudi Arabia for OPEC's failure to agree an output freeze.
Ed Morse, head of global commodity research at Citigroup, told Bloomberg that:
"The weekend talks are demonstration that the Saudi government, as the deputy crown prince has clearly stated, doesn't want to cede market share.
They are fearful that the world may be in a weak or bearish market for a long period of time. In a bear market, as they learned from the 1980s, if they cede market share it is very difficult to get it back."
7.54am BST
The price of oil is sliding sharply this morning, as markets are hit by gloom following yesterday's OPEC meeting.
US crude oil has shed almost 5%, falling to $38.45 per barrel. Brent crude is suffering too, down 4.4% at $41.20.
Oil had pared some losses this morning, but the price appears to be heading south once more https://t.co/6XrUKVmsI5 pic.twitter.com/FRfm9T3ZHr
Stock markets are running on crude. MSCI World and #oil traded in tandem since 2015. pic.twitter.com/tFRIlcUwZJ
7.30am BST
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business.
Investors have a lot to worry about this week.
Related: Oil producers fail to agree deal to freeze output after Saudi Arabia-Iran standoff
Related: Brazilian congress votes to impeach president Dilma Rousseff
Join me tomorrow for a Twitter Q&A on the global economy. Start sending your questions: #AskLagarde. pic.twitter.com/3tSUd0myaE
Related: George Osborne: Brexit would leave UK 'permanently poorer'
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