Paris - A poll released on Monday showed that French President Nicolas Sarkozy's forceful handling of the financial crisis and his calls to reform capitalism have given his popularity a substantial boost.

According to the survey, which was conducted by the Viavoice institute for the daily Liberation, 48 per cent of respondents said they had a "positive opinion" of Sarkozy, a jump of 8 percentage points over one month ago and his best showing since January.

Sarkozy's popularity surge was due in large part to left-wing voters, among whom he gained 10 points, to a positive rating of 29 per cent.

Viavoice director Francois Miquet-Marty told Liberation that Sarkozy's newfound popularity was due in large part to "(his) will to better regulate capitalism" and his willingness to have the state intervene to confront the economic crisis.

The poll was conducted on November 7-8 using a representative sample of 1,030 adults. (dpa)