Realmeter poll showed Lee's disapproval topping 50% for the first time as a sharp KOSPI selloff, leveraged ETF backlash and broader economic concerns weighed on sentiment.
South Korea President Lee Jae-myung's approval rating fell to 45.9%, its lowest level since he took office in June last year, while his disapproval rating rose to 50.5%, the first time negative assessments have crossed the 50% mark. The latest Realmeter poll, commissioned by Energy Economy News, showed Lee's approval down 0.4 percentage point from a week earlier and disapproval up 1 percentage point, leaving a 4.6-point gap outside the survey's margin of error. The deterioration in sentiment came after a violent stock-market selloff that saw the KOSPI plunge 10.84% on July 28 and about 6% on July 29, triggering circuit breakers on both days for a combined drop of roughly 16.2%. Bloomberg reported South Korean stocks fell 22% in July, their worst monthly decline since the global financial crisis, with four circuit breakers in a single month, a record. Authorities responded with emergency steps including tighter rules for single-stock leveraged products, which had become a focus of criticism after their launch at the end of May. Realmeter said the KOSPI crash, controversy over leveraged ETFs, real-estate tax policy, debate over presidential term limits and legislation on prosecutors' supplementary investigation powers all contributed to rising negative coverage. Employment worries have added to the pressure, with youth unemployment at 7% in June. Even so, support for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea rose 3.8 percentage points to 45.1%, while the main opposition People Power Party fell 2.9 percentage points to 37.7%, suggesting dissatisfaction has been directed more at Lee's handling of the economy than toward boosting the opposition.