Argentine President Mauricio Macri’s popularity is at about 65% two months after he narrowly won office and carried out a shock currency devaluation as part of his plan to revive Latin America’s No. 3 economy, two polls showed.
Macri, a conservative, had a popularity rating of 64% in one poll by the Poliarquia consultancy published on Friday and 67% in the latest survey from pollster Isonomia, Reuters reported.
His tight election victory on Nov. 22 ended more than a decade of leftist rule and Macri has promised to overhaul interventionist policies that upset investors and the country’s farmers.
His first major step after taking office on Dec. 10 was to float Argentina’s peso currency. That triggered a 28% devaluation, but the polls released on Friday show Macri has won over many Argentines in his first weeks as president.
He could face pressure from opposition lawmakers in March when Congress returns from the Southern Hemisphere summer holidays and as wage talks begin with powerful public workers’ unions.
Macri will need Congress’ support to settle a politically fraught lawsuit with a group of New York hedge funds over defaulted debt.
Wage negotiations will be closely watched as Macri tries to bring inflation, which stands at around 25%, under control.
His government says the economy will grow between 0.5% and 1% this year, before accelerating to around 4.5% annually between 2017 and 2019.
