TOKYO, 28 March 2005 — OPEC-member Qatar believes crude oil prices are too high but that it is not yet time to decide whether to further increase production, the Gulf state’s oil minister, Abdullah ibn Hamad Al-Attiyah, said yesterday. Oil prices have risen about 30 percent this year, hitting a record high $57.60 on March 17 despite a decision by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to boost production immediately by 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 27.5 million bpd. The organization has agreed that its president, Kuwait’s Ahmad Al-Sabah, will call members to set another increase if he thought it necessary before OPEC’s next meeting in June.