Emerging from talks with German opposition leaders on how to cut record unemployment, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on Thursday said there had been progress but he admitted key differences remained on necessary reforms. "Naturally we could not agree on everything - but we made a good step forward," said Schroeder at a news briefing after talks with Christian Democratic Union (CDU) leader Angela Merkel and Christian Social Union (CSU) chief and Bavarian Premier Edmund Stoiber. Schroeder, in a related development flanking the meeting, admitted he was "very unhappy" over failure of the incumbent premier from his Social Democratic Party (SPD) to win re-election in Schleswig- Holstein state. Heide Simonis failed to get re-elected Thursday despite four rounds of secret voting in the state's parliament after a member of her own party apparently voted against her. At a separate news conference, Merkel referred to "constructive talks - but with dissent". Stoiber was harsher, terming Schroeder's proposals "measures of small and medium magnitude". --More 2347 Local Time 2047 GMT
