Meloni ranked fourth in Global Leader Approval Tracker.

Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni has an approval rating of 48 per cent, the fourth-highest among the 22 world leaders monitored by Morning Consult, a US-based global decision intelligence company.

Meloni also has the highest approval rating among EU leaders - based on data compiled by Morning Consult from 4-10 January 2023 - news that was welcomed by her far-right Fratelli d'Italia party.

Morning Consult monitors the approval ratings of government leaders in 22 countries, offering what it describes as "real-time insight into the shifting political dynamics across the globe."

Primo leader in Europa per consenso e tra i capi di governo più apprezzati al mondo: il Presidente @GiorgiaMeloni si conferma guida autorevole, coerente e determinata per l’Italia. pic.twitter.com/GtvAvrEC8J

— Fratelli d'Italia (@FratellidItalia) January 18, 2023

In first place worldwide is India's Narendra Modi with approval ratings of 76 per cent, followed by Mexico's Andrés Manuel López Obrador (65 per cent) and Australia's Anthony Albanese (59 per cent).

The tracker put Meloni on 48 per cent, in fourth place, ahead of Ireland's Leo Varadkar and US president Joe Biden, both on 42 per cent, and Canada's Justin Trudeau on 40 per cent.

The EU leader with the highest approval ratings after Meloni and Varadkar was Spain's Pedro Sánchez on 37 per cent, followed by Belgium's Alexander De Croo (33 per cent), Sweden's Ulf Kristersson (33 per cent), France's Emmanuel Macron (31 per cent), Germany's Olaf Scholz (31 per cent) and the UK's Rishi Sunak (31 per cent).

The countries monitored in the Morning Consult approval ratings tracker are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK and the US.

Photo credit: Alessia Pierdomenico / Shutterstock.com.