That gives the president some political capital to use in trying to get Congress to pass some of his second-term proposals such as gun restrictions, immigration reforms, and job creation -- far more political capital than that of Congress (which is still down in the 12% approval range).
The presidential approval numbers are from a Gallup Poll survey of 165,427 randomly selected people between January 1st and December 31st of 2012 (with a margin of error for the national numbers being only 1 point). The chart below shows the state by state approval ratings of the president. Note that his approval ratings rose in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Alabama had the same rating for both 2011 and 2012, and six states showed a drop in approval for the president (West Virginia, Utah, Nebraska, Wyoming, North Dakota, and Alaska).