A magnitude 6.3 earthquake hit near Miyazaki in southwestern Japan. <br />''<br />''The US Geological Survey said the earthquake struck at 8:48 a.m. local time today and had an epicentre 39 kilometres southeast of Miyazaki, a city of about 400,000. <br />''<br />''<span style="color: #222222;">The earthquake had a depth of 23 kilometres. Local media said no abnormalities were reported at the nearby Sendai nuclear power plant in Kagoshima Prefecture. No tsunami warning was issued. </span><br />