Magnitude 4.6 quake shakes eastern Japan

TOKYO, June 2 (Reuters) An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.6 shook eastern Japan, including Tokyo, today, the Meteorological Agency said.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage from the quake that struck around 2.46 pm local time. No tsunami warning was issued.

The focus of the tremor was 60 km underground in Ibaraki prefecture, just northeast of Tokyo, the agency said.

Earthquakes are common in Japan, one of the world's most seismically active areas. The country accounts for about 20 percent of all earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater.

In October 2004, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 struck the Niigata region of northern Japan, killing 65 people and injuring more than 3,000.

That was the deadliest quake since a magnitude 7.3 tremor hit the city of Kobe in 1995, killing more than 6,400.

Reuters ABR GC1203