High Philippine inflation dents Marcos’ approval ratings

MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s approval ratings edged lower due to public dissatisfaction over his government’s handling of inflation, but he remains popular, an opinion poll showed on Wednesday.

The Pulse Asia survey found that 78% of 1,200 respondents polled in March approved of Marcos’ performance, lower than the 82% he got in November, while 80% said they trusted the president, down from 83% in an earlier poll.

Since taking office in June 2022, Marcos, the son of the late strongman ousted in a 1986 uprising, has had to grapple with inflation that has soared to levels not seen in 14 years due largely to rising food and fuel costs.

Inflation slowed for a second straight month in March to 7.6% but remained well above the government’s 2%-4% target for the year.

Controlling costs of living was the top concern of 63% of respondents.

Slightly more than half, or 52%, of respondents disapproved of the government’s handling of inflation, with 25% saying they approved, while the rest were undecided.

Marcos’ approval ratings were slightly lower than the 83% that his vice president, Sara Duterte, got in March. Duterte, daughter of former president Rodrigo Duterte, currently serves as education minister, while Marcos helms the agriculture department.

In the same survey, 61% percent of respondents approved of Marcos’ government in terms of “defending the integrity of Philippine territory against foreigners”, up from 58% in November.

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