The Japanese parliament elected Shinzo Abe as prime minister Wednesday , giving him a second chance at the same job five years after he resigned abruptly . Abe , 58 , is the nation 's seventh prime minister in six years . He started the revolving door of prime ministers by resigning in 2007 , just one year into the job . The leader of the Liberal Democratic Party has vowed to boost the economy and defend Japanese interests , including territorial disputes with China over a group of islands . Read more : Japanese politicians vie for votes amid turmoil . Asia 's first and second largest economies have been embroiled in a trade dispute over the islands in the East China Sea . Both nations claim the islands . China was outraged when Japan nationalized the islands in September . In retaliation , Chinese consumers slowed their purchases of Japanese products , dropping Tokyo 's exports to China by more than 14 % that month . Read more : Japan dissolves lower house of parliament , sets stage for election . Some investors believe the second coming of Abe will be good for Japan 's equity markets . `` Investors are pricing in ... much greater monetary easing , '' said Ben Collett , head of Japanese equities at Louis Capital Markets in Hong Kong . In November , Abe called for unlimited monetary easing to jumpstart the economy . He also urged the Bank of Japan to raise its current 1 % inflation goal to as much as 3 % . Since then , investors betting on an Abe administration have pushed the Tokyo Nikkei up by more than 10 % . Read more : In cabinet revamp , Japan 's Noda brings in woman with China ties . Then there 's the question of how Japan powers itself amid the backlash against nuclear energy following the meltdown of Fukushima nuclear reactors . The reactors melted after a powerful earthquake and tsunami in March last year . Abe 's party has called for safety tests on all nuclear plants over the next three years . Those that pass should be brought back online , he has said . He 'll also have to deal with the enduring task of cleaning up communities shattered by the earthquake and tsunami , and contend with local anger that the recovery seems to have stalled . Former Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda stepped down as party president after exit polls showed a smashing loss in lower house voting . His Democratic Party of Japan , once seen as a breath of fresh air , was considered increasingly ineffective . Noda conceded defeat in parliamentary elections , signaling the return to power of the conservative Liberal Democratic Party that ruled the country almost continuously since its establishment in 1955 . It was forced from power three years ago by Noda 's party . Abe is inheriting a struggling economy , regional tensions and questions over Japan 's role in Asia . `` The economy is at the bottom . It 's our first mission to turn it around , '' he said . The new prime minister said though he plans to take a strong stand with China and its other neighbors , he also seek to improve relations with Beijing . Since assuming power last year , the outgoing prime minister struggled to contend with the country 's economic struggles .
` ` The economy is at the bottom . It 's our first mission to turn it around , '' ' Abe says . Abe , however , is the nation 's seventh prime minister in six years . He faces a major task of reviving the economy and making a decision on nuclear power .