Washington (CNN) -- A late evening meeting between President Barack Obama and the leaders of the House and Senate failed to reach agreement Wednesday on a spending plan to avert a government shutdown, but all the participants said progress was made and talks would continue. 

If there is no deal by midnight Friday, when the current spending authorization measure expires, parts of the government will close down. 

Obama called the 90-minute talks with House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, "constructive" and he said they narrowed and clarified the outstanding issues. 

"I remain confident that if we're serious about getting something done, we should be able to complete a deal and get it passed and avert a shutdown," Obama said in brief remarks to reporters. "But it's going to require a sufficient sense of urgency from all parties involved" to prevent a shutdown that "could have real effects on everyday Americans." 

Both Reid and Boehner told reporters in their own brief comments that the meeting made progress in narrowing their differences, and that their staffs would work through the night to try to reach further consensus. 

"I have confidence we can get this done," said Reid, who criticized Boehner and Republicans earlier in the day for intransigence. "We're not there yet." 

Boehner, standing next to Reid, said "we do have some honest differences," and he emphasized there was no agreement on either a specific figure for spending cuts for the rest of the current fiscal year or on policy issues that the Republicans want included in the measure, such as specifically prohibiting funding for abortions.  QUESTIONS:

Q1:
1. What happened between President Barack Obama and the leaders of the House and Senate on Wednesday?
2. What was the conclusion of the agreement between the House and Senate and Barack Obama on Wednesday?
3. 
