BERLIN Daryl Williams Panthers Jersey , Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- The conservative union led by German sitting Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday defended its dominant role in the Bundestag (German parliament) with 32.5 percent of the vote, according to the preliminary exit poll.

 

The figure fell short of expectations and was nine percentage points lower than in the 2013 parliamentary election.

 

The Union's main rival, Germany's center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) led by former European Parliament president Martin Schulz Russell Shepard Panthers Jersey , also suffered a big setback and took just 20 percent of the vote, which was their worst election result since World War II, said the poll.

 

In the last Bundestag election of 2013 Michael Palardy Panthers Jersey , Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party with its sister Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU) party secured 41.5 percent of the vote.

 

Though lower than expected, the margin of CDU and CSU will still offer a decent chance for Merkel to claim her fourth term as Chancellor.

 

Senior official of the CDU Volker Kauder told reporters after the preliminary exit poll that the CDU had reached its expectation for the election, and Merkel will remain in office as chancellor and will be granted the mandatory to form the new cabinet.

 

In a televised speech after the preliminary exit poll Matt Kalil Panthers Jersey , Merkel told her supporters that "we have clear government mandate, and no government can be formed without us", admitting that her bloc had reached strategic goal in election though she had hoped for better results.

 

She also promised to win back voters of far-right party Alternative fuer Deutschland (AfD) with good policies Devin Funchess Panthers Jersey , vowing to fight against illegal immigrants while protecting interests of legal citizens.

 

For his part, Schulz said the election marked a "historic crash" for the SPD. But Thomas Oppermana, a senior official of the party Shaq Thompson Panthers Jersey , said Schulz will continue to be the president of the party despite the "crash" and led the renovation of the party.

 

According to local media ARD, Schulz said his party had no intention to form a coalition government with the conservative union and "will go to the opposite".

 

In another development, the AfD crossed the five-percent-vote threshold on Sunday came into the new parliament for the first time with about 13.5 percent of votes Daryl Worley Panthers Jersey , becoming the third strongest party in the Bundestag.

 

It is also the first far-right populist party in the Bundestag since WWII.

 

"We will hunt Merkel! We want to bring our country and people back," said Alexander Gauland, one of the two candidates of the AfD in this election who always accuses Merkel's policies in refugees and euro crisis.

 

"It's a historical and outstanding result for AfD. We will experience more pluralism in the Bundestag James Bradberry Panthers Jersey , and we will experience a lively democracy through the AfD," said AfD's politician Bjoern Hoecke.

 

Founded in 2013, the eurosceptic and anti-immigration party -- which welcomed Brexit Harrison Butker Panthers Jersey , missed the Bundestag with 4.7 percent of votes in the same year.

 

The party gained momentum during the Euro and the refugee crisis. It was polling at around 10 percent before Sunday's federal election.

 

About 73,500 polling stations across the country opened at 8:00 a.m. local time (0600 GMT) and closed at 6:00 p.m. (1600 GMT).

 

Official statistics showed that Sunday's turnout of the election stood at 75 percent, higher than the 71.5 percent in 2013.

 

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BEIJING， Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- China's major steel companies saw a profit turnaround in the first half of 2016， but the pressure of cutting overcapacity in the sector remains.

 

In a report filed to the Shanghai Stock Exchange， Shandong Iron and Steel Company said its net profits stood at 23.15 million yuan (3.5 million U.S. dollars) in H1， surging over 210 percent year on year.

 

Net profits for Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel Union reached 27.52 million yuan in the first half， an increase of over 117 percent year on year.

 

Sansteel Minguang Company in Fujian Province saw H1 net profits jump more than 233 percent year on year to 360 million yuan.

 

Of the 19 steel companies that have already released their profits in the first half of the year， 13 companies reported profit rises， with eight seeing profits more than double.

 

The total net profits of the 19 steel companies reached 2.3 billion yuan in H1， compared with a loss of 1.57 billion yuan during the same period last year.

 

Both Shandong Iron and Steel Company and Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel Union said that rising steel prices in the second quarter contributed to profits.

 

Steel makers have faced difficulties over the past few years， due to shrinking demand and excessive capacity building up during decades of rapid expansion.

 

However， steel price have risen in the past few months amid temporarily strained supply as some producers scaled back output to avoid losses.

 

The Complex Steel Price Index released by the China Iron and Steel Association hit 67.83 at the end of June， up 11.46 points on the beginning of the year.

 

But the pressure of cutting overcapacity still remains for the steel sector， with progress slow in some regions.

 

In the first seven months of the year， China only achieved 38 and 47 percent of its annual reduction targets for the coal and steel sectors， respectively.

 

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