President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating rebounded for the first time in three weeks to 53%, driven by positive sentiment over a recently finalized tariff deal with the United States. A Realmeter survey showed this uptick, with negative assessments falling to 43.3%.
President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating rebounded for the first time in three weeks, reaching 53%, according to a Realmeter survey commissioned by a local news outlet. The poll, conducted among 2,517 adults from Monday to Friday last week, showed positive assessments up 1.8 percentage points from the previous week, while negative views fell 1.6 points to 43.3%. The margin of error was plus or minus 2 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.
Realmeter attributed the uptick to Lee's pragmatic diplomatic achievements, particularly the completion of a tariff deal with U.S. President Donald Trump during their summit on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) gathering in the southeastern city of Gyeongju. The pollster also highlighted positive economic indicators, such as the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index breaking the 4,000 mark for the first time last week.
In a separate survey by the same pollster, involving 1,004 individuals aged 18 and over on Thursday and Friday, support for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea rose 1.3 percentage points to 45.4%. The main opposition People Power Party saw its support increase 0.6 points to 37.9%, marking the third consecutive week of gains. This poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level.
The tariff deal is expected to open a new chapter in South Korea-U.S. industrial and economic ties, though ongoing monitoring of its broader impacts will be essential.