Public support for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's Cabinet has risen marginally to 18.0% in March, an opinion poll showed Thursday.
While the approval rate increased 1.1 percentage points from the previous month, it was still the third-lowest figure since Kishida took office in October 2021.
The support rate remained below 20% for four months in a row and below the key threshold of 30%, which indicates that the administration is in the "danger zone," for the eighth straight month.
Meanwhile, the disapproval rate in the Jiji Press poll fell 3.0 points to 57.4%. The proportion of respondents who did not have a strong opinion on the Cabinet came to 24.6%.
The Kishida Cabinet's faltering support rate is mainly attributed to a political funds scandal that has rocked factions within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which Kishida heads.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average exceeding 40,000 for the first time ever earlier this month has apparently had a limited positive impact on the public's perception of the cabinet.
Public support for the LDP rose 1.4 points to 17.7%, falling below 20% for the fifth month in a row.
The poll was conducted over four days through Monday, interviewing 2,000 people age 18 or over across Japan. Of them, 57.7% gave valid responses.
In a poll conducted by Kyodo News and released earlier this week, the approval rating for Kishida's Cabinet fell 4.4 percentage points to a fresh low of 20.1%.
The Kyodo poll showed 91.4% believe LDP lawmakers involved in the funds scandal have not been held accountable, even though some members, including Kishida, appeared in a session held by the parliamentary political ethics committee.