AFP/Mexico City
By a large majority, Mexicans disapprove of President Enrique Pena Nieto’s handling of their country’s economy, including his historic opening of the oil industry to outside investors, a new poll has found.
The poll released yesterday by Pew Research showed a sharp decline in support for the Mexican president’s economic policies, with one in six expressing disapproval. Only 37% said they approved.
Pena Nieto’s signature reforms of the oil industry, which ended a 76-year-old state monopoly, were nearly as unpopular, with 57% disapproving, the survey found.
“This could reflect the slow economic activity of 2014 thus far, which caused the Mexican Central Bank to revise down its growth forecast earlier this year,” Pew said in its analysis of the numbers.
The Mexican economy grew only one% in 2013, and is expected to grow 2.7% this year, short of the bank’s initial estimate of 3.9%.
While Pena Nieto has been praised internationally for his ambitious reforms, the poll showed “that domestically his positive image is faltering and a key component of his political agenda - economic reform - is decidedly unpopular,” Pew said.
His personal popularity has dropped to 51% from 57% since 2013, the poll found. Mexicans viewing the president negatively, meanwhile, climbed to 48%, up from 38%.
In addition to the economy, law and order remains a top public concern. Of those surveyed, 79% said they regard crime as a serious problem.
The survey was based on interviews with 1,000 adults between April and May, and has a margin of error of plus or minus four percentage points.
