While most producers are pumping at full capacity to meet record world demand, Iran has been unable to reach its nominal production quota assigned by OPEC, 4.11 million barrels a day.

All other producers are already pumping at maximum capacity.

Facing increased political pressure from consuming nations to bring oil prices down, producers are pumping close to their capacity to allow refiners and other buyers to increase supplies in anticipation of summer and winter peaks in demand.

Driven by high prices and the threat of more interruptions from the Persian Gulf, producers pumped everything they could in the early part of the year.

In response, the producers pump sleeping gas into the house via the vents, causing all of them to fall unconscious.

Some American lawmakers - their constituents paying soaring prices for home heating oil and facing the prospect of continued steep gasoline prices - have sought to press the producers to pump more oil.

With political uncertainty in Iraq, Russia and Venezuela, oil traders fear that any disruption in supplies will be hard to match at a time when most producers are pumping flat out.

Foie gras producers shove a pipe down the throats of ducks and geese and pump them so full of food that they can hardly walk, let alone fly a great distance.

Over the last two years, OPEC's producers have been pumping at their maximum capacity in an attempt to bring prices down.

Global oil markets cannot afford to lose any output as most producers are pumping at their maximum to meet record demand.