Public support for the cabinet of Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi remained broadly unchanged in early April, although dissatisfaction with the government’s handling of oil supply disruptions has intensified, according to a Kyodo News survey.

The approval rating slipped by 0.3 percentage points from March to 63.8%, while the disapproval rate rose 2.0 points to 26.0%.

In the two-day telephone poll conducted over the weekend, 49.3% of respondents judged the prime minister’s response to oil supply shortages linked to the Iran conflict to be insufficient, compared with 41.4% who viewed it as adequate, Kyodo News reports.

Against the backdrop of a global oil crisis, Japan has begun releasing approximately 80m barrels from its reserves, equivalent to around 45 days of domestic consumption, and is understood to be considering a further release in May. Takaichi has also backed the possibility of a coordinated stockpile release by the International Energy Agency following talks in March with its executive director.

Concerns over the broader impact of Middle East tensions also remain widespread. Some 89.5% of respondents expressed anxiety about the effect on daily life, up 4.1 points, while 69.6% supported continued government subsidies to curb petrol prices.

Retail gasoline prices rose to a record JPY190.80 (about $1.19) per litre in mid-March before easing to the JPY170 mark, close to the government’s target level, as subsidies took effect.

On foreign policy, 80.3% of respondents viewed US-Israeli strikes on Iran as a wrong decision, with 50.1% supporting the government’s decision not to take a position on the conflict, compared to 42.2% who did not.

Constitutional reform saw 30.0% backing the amending of the charter to allow deployment of Japan’s Self-Defence Forces to the Strait of Hormuz, while 64.4% said such a change was unnecessary.