President Joe Biden's approval rating has climbed to a five-month high, with Democrats appearing to rally around their leader as he prepares for battle with the GOP House, the February IBD/TIPP Poll finds. Yet Biden's improvement is strictly among self-described investors and higher earners. It may be no coincidence that the S&P 500 touched its own five-month high amid polling last week.
The new IBD/TIPP Poll finds that 46% Americans age 18 and up approve of how Biden is handling the presidency, and 44% disapprove. Biden's net +2-point approval rating is the first net positive rating for Biden since December 2021. Biden's net job approval improved from -2 in January, with 44% approval and 46% disapproval, and -9 in December (40%-49%).
Biden Approval Rating Details
The rise in Biden's approval rating came as approval among members of his own party rose to 81% from 76% last month and 71% in December. Disapproval fell to 12% from 16% in January and 20% the prior month.
Yet Biden's dire standing among independents has persisted. Now 56% of independents pan Biden's job performance and 28% approve, vs. 54%-31% in January. Biden's -28-point net approval rating was the worst since October.
Meanwhile, Republican disapproval of Biden widened to 85%-10% from 80%-13% in January.
Biden's approval rating was underwater among all income groups except those earning above $75,000. For the highest earners, Biden's net approval rating shot up to 30 points (62%-32%) in February from 7 points (50%-43%) the prior month.
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Approval Of President Biden's Policies
Net disapproval of Biden's economic policies narrowed to -9 points from -17 in the new IBD/TIPP Poll. Now adults disapprove of Biden's economic policies 44%-35% vs. 46%-29% in January. Again, the improvement came among Democrats, higher earners and investors.
All signs point to inflation as a major source of Biden's poor economic reviews. U.S. employers added 12.1 million jobs in the first 24 months of Biden's presidency, including 517,000 last month, Labor Department data shows. Meanwhile, the average hourly wage has grown a solid 4.4% over the past year. Yet inflation has eaten away all of that increase and more for many Americans.
The IBD/TIPP Poll finds that 27% of adults say their wages have kept pace with inflation, up from 21% in January. Meanwhile, 48% say wages haven't kept up with inflation, down from 52%. The improvement was almost strictly among higher earners.
A steady 89% of Americans say they're concerned about the path of inflation over the next 12 months. That's despite a 31% drop in the average national gas price since a gallon of regular unleaded peaked above $5 in mid-June.
Investors Back Biden
Biden's approval rating among investors widened to 62%-31% from 53%-42% last month and 50%-43% in December. IBD/TIPP counts as investors those respondents who say they have at least $10,000 in household-owned mutual funds or equities.
While stocks had a rough ride last year amid aggressive Federal Reserve interest-rate hikes, the S&P 500 and especially the Nasdaq have seen a powerful rally gain steam in recent weeks. However, Monday's stock market action continued Friday's weakness spurred by stronger-than-expected economic data. While the January jobs report eased concerns about an imminent recession, it increased the odds of additional Fed rate hikes.
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Through Friday, the Dow Jones was down 7.8% from its all-time closing high in January 2022, but up 18.1% from its bear-market closing low on Sept. 30. The S&P 500 has rallied 15.6% from its Oct. 12 closing low, but remains 13.8% below its peak. The Nasdaq composite has climbed 17.6% from its 52-week low on Dec. 28, but is still 25.2% off its November 2021 high.
Since Election Day on Nov. 3, 2020, the Dow is up 23.5%, the S&P 500 22.8%, and the Nasdaq 7.6%.
Be sure to read IBD's The Big Picture column after each trading day to get the latest on the prevailing stock market trend and what it means for your trading decisions.
The president's problem is among non-investors, who now disapprove of Biden's job performance by a wider 52%-37% margin vs. 48%-40% in January.
The February IBD/TIPP Poll reflects online surveys of 1,358 adults from Feb. 1-3. The results come with a credibility interval of +/- 2.8 points.
Presidential Leadership Index
The IBD/TIPP Presidential Leadership Index rose 2.2 points to 50, the highest point since Oct. 2021. Readings above 50 are net positive, while below-50 readings are negative. The Presidential Leadership Index combines survey readings on how American adults feel about Biden's personal qualities, presidential performance, and leadership attributes. Biden's favorability (52.2) and job approval (51.5) both turned positive for the first time in more than a year, while the leadership index remained underwater (46.2).
Please follow Jed Graham on Twitter @IBD_JGraham for coverage of economic policy and financial markets.
