Trump’s popularity climbs as recession threat fades

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump is becoming more popular as fewer Americans believe a recession is on the way, according to a new poll. 

The new poll shows that more people now approve of how he’s handling the economy.

The two-day poll showed 44% of respondents approved of the Republican leader’s performance, up from 42% in a prior Reuters/Ipsos survey carried out April 25–27. The poll had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

Approval of Trump’s economic stewardship rose to 39% from 36%.

Trump began his term with a 47% approval rating, and saw his popularity tick lower as Americans worried about a series of trade wars he launched since taking office on January 20.

Trump’s moves to hike tariffs to historic levels on major trading partners, notably China, fuelled stock market declines as many economists predicted a recession was looming.

In recent weeks, Trump has eased back on his sharpest trade actions and announced on Monday morning he was slashing tariffs on China. The benchmark S&P 500 stock index .SPX is up about 17% from its lowest closing of Trump’s second administration, hit soon after he unveiled sweeping tariffs.

Among the public, concerns about recession have also eased but remain high.

Some 69% of respondents in the new poll said they were concerned about a recession, down from 76% in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted April 16–21. The share who said they worried about the stock market fell to 60% from 67%.

Trump has said blame for the country’s economic problems should fall on former President Joe Biden, his Democratic predecessor. Inflation surged during Biden’s presidency amid the global economic chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic, but trended lower toward the end of his presidency. Annual price inflation cooled in April, the Labour Department said on Tuesday, though economists continue to warn that Trump’s trade actions are likely to boost prices later in the year.

In the Reuters/Ipsos poll, 59% of respondents said it would be Trump’s fault if the economy falls into recession this year, compared to 37% who said it would be Biden’s fault.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll, conducted nationwide online, surveyed 1,163 people.