The wave reached Kushiro on the coast of Hokkaido Island at 1452 (0552 GMT), about 90 minutes after the earthquake, Japanese monitors say.

But monitors warned people to take care as waves could still hit the region.

Warnings had gone out for the island's north-eastern coast, with a lesser warning for the island of Honshu.

Meteorologists had warned of a tsunami up to 1m (3ft) in height from 1400.

However, as the appointed time passed, most areas said there had been no visible changes to the sea level.

Evacuation

The earthquake happened at 1324 (0424 GMT), the meteorological agency said.

Officials in towns along Japan's Pacific coast issued evacuation orders to flee to higher ground, reports said.

Estimates of the magnitude of the quake vary from 7.7 to 8.3.

The US-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a warning for Russia, Japan and Markus Island in the Pacific Ocean.

Hawaii, Taiwan and the Philippines were among a host of Pacific territories put on tsunami watch, a lower level of alert.

There was no confirmation that a tsunami was generated by the earthquake, the warning added.