A tsunami as high as three metres (10 feet) could hit Japan's northeastern coast after an earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 7.6 occurred offshore on Monday, according to the US Geological Survey and the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said.

The tsunami warning was issued for the prefectures of Hokkaido, Aomori and Iwate, after the quake jolted a large part of Japan's north and east at 1415 GMT.

The epicentre of the quake was 80 kilometres (50 miles) off the coast of Aomori prefecture, at a depth of 50 kilometres (30 miles), JMA added.

Meanwhile, authorities have halted Tohoku Shinkansen train services in northeastern Japan due to the quake, Kyodo News reported.

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