Moon's approval rating jumps following inter-Korean summit

President Moon Jae-in's approval rating ended a six-week losing streak to rebound to over 60 percent thanks to positive evaluations of his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un last week, a survey showed Monday.

Moon's rating rose 8.8 percentage points from a week earlier to 61.9 percent in a Realmeter survey of 2,507 people conducted from Sept. 17-21. The survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.

Negative views of Moon's performance fell 9.4 percentage points to 32.3 percent.

In the second week of September, Moon's approval rating fell to a record low of 53.1 percent due to the sluggish economy and poor jobs data.

The Seoul-based pollster attributed the rise to the "positive evaluation of the summit in Pyongyang among all regions and generations."

Moon's trip to the North from Sept. 18-20 produced a series of tangible results, including Kim's pledge to take concrete denuclearization steps, such as dismantling the country's ICBM test site and his pledge to make a reciprocal visit to Seoul soon.

The two leaders also agreed to take sweeping measures to reduce military tensions and further bolster inter-Korean exchanges and economic cooperation such as reconnecting cross-border roads and railways and to work together to win the right to host the Summer Olympics in 2032. (Yonhap)