The very shallow quake occurred near Chichijima at 7:32 a.m. (2232 GMT), the Japan Meteorological Agency said on its Web site (www.jma.co.jp).
TOKYO (Reuters) - An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.3 jolted islands south of Tokyo on Saturday, a government agency said, but there were no immediate reports of damage and a tsunami was not expected.
The very shallow quake occurred near Chichijima at 7:32 a.m. (2232 GMT), the Japan Meteorological Agency said on its Web site (www.jma.co.jp).
Chichijima, which means father's island, is a popular whale watching spot around 1,000 km (600 miles) from the mainland and home to nearly 2,000 people.
"No tsunami damage (is expected) by this earthquake though there may be slight sea level changes," the agency said.
!ADVERTISEMENT!It said the quake was rated three out of seven on the Japanese scale of earthquake intensity, which means it likely rattled cupboards and caused lights to sway on the island, but was unlikely to cause major damage.
(Reporting by Rodney Joyce)
