Magnitude 4.9 quake hits Tokyo area, no tsunami warning

[TOKYO] An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.9 hit the Tokyo area on Thursday but no tsunami warning was issued, Japan's Meteorological Agency said.

The quake was centred in northwestern Chiba prefecture, east to Tokyo, according to the agency.

Japan is one of the world's most seismically active areas, accounting for about 20 per cent of the world's earthquakes of magnitude six or greater.

REUTERS