The World

We are borrowing Gideon’s blog to cover Japan’s earthquake. I am Shannon Bond in New York and I have taken over from Alan Rappeport and, earlier, Leyla Boulton in London. We are tapping our correspondents around the world.  Please keep your comments coming. All times are London time.

2330 – We’re suspending rolling coverage until our colleagues in Asia are able to join us once again. Stay tuned.

2328 – More from Michiyo Nakamoto in Tokyo, who has spoken to sources at Tepco: Pressure in units 1,2,3 at Fukushima Nuclear power plant Number 1 has risen in the primary containment vessel but unable to confirm the level. All units almost completely sealed. The government has ordered Tepco to release the pressure and Tepco is preparing to do so. There is no electricity so unable to cool. All units at Fukushima Number 2 power plant shut down but all units apart from those that had been under maintenance are still functioning.

2319 - Reuters quotes a Tepco spokesman saying that pressure is stable inside the reactors but rising in the containment vessels. He said he did not know if there would be a need to release pressure – and radiation – at the plant at this point.

2310 – The Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) now says two nuclear power plants in Fukushima have lost ability to cool down, the FT’s Michiyo Nakamoto reports from Tokyo.

2307 – Japanese officials say radiation levels are also rising outside the Fukushima plant, the AP reports. “This may be the result of them carrying out the release of radioactive steam that they were talking about,” says Ed Crooks, the FT’s US industry and energy editor.

2240 – Reuters Mexico tweets that the Tokyo Electric Power Company says it has secured outside power and has begun providing water to Fukushima reactors 1, 2 and 4.

2215 – Chile is evacuating low-lying coastal areas after revising its estimates for wave heights up to three metres, Bloomberg reports. Residents of Easter Island in the south Pacific have already relocated to higher ground.

2200 – More from Michiyo Nakamoto: The radiation level in central control room of Fukushima Number 1 nuclear power plant is at 1,000 times normal level, according to the Nuclear Power Safety Council.

2156 – FT Alphaville flags an S&P report that suggests the latest Japan quake could be the costliest in history in terms of insured losses. That means it would have to top the 1994 Northridge, California quake, which caused $15.3bn in insured losses.

2150 – USGS is full of historical data on earthquakes. Friday’s was the most powerful one to strike Japan since at least 1891, when a magnitude 8 killed 7,273 people. A 7.9 in 1923 was far more fatal, killing 143,000.

2145 – More context from Reuters: the USGS said a magnitude 9 earthquake was equivalent to 25,000 nuclear bombs.

2130 - Michiyo Nakamoto, an FT correspondent in Tokyo, says that the Meteorological Agency states Nagano earthquake is separate from the Tohoku one. Meanwhile, oil tanks washed offshore by tsunami in Kessennuma, one of the worst-hit fishing ports in Miyagi, feared in danger of exploding in flames

2104 – IHS Global Insight is assessing the economic impact of the quake, recalling that the 1995 disaster in Kobe cost the country $100bn. Thankfully, that led to tightening of building regulations across Japan, which could be beneficial during this crisis.

“Nevertheless, if even a small fraction of homes and structures are destroyed—or become structurally unsound and need to be rebuilt—then the damages would be in the tens of billions of dollars,” Dan Ryan, of IHS, notes.

He goes on to predict that the rise in the price of Japanese bonds, as overseas funds are repatriated to Japan, will reverse once the government ramps up spending to rebuild.

2051 – The Nagano quake has been downgraded slightly by the USGS to a 6.3.

2040 – Sky News is reporting that New Zealand has upgraded its tsunami warning because of predictions that waves more than a metre high could hit the coast.

2031 – The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has a technicoloured image showing the height of the wave.

20:27 –  Multiple reports, which are impossible to confirm at this point, are estimating that 88,000 people are missing in Japan.

20:20 – Reuters tweets that Japan’s trade ministry is saying pressure inside Fukushima reactor may have risen to 2.1 times designed capacity.

1958 – Former FT journalist John Willman wonders if the Japanese earthquake will bring down a financial institution, as the 1995 Kobe quake was blamed for the downfall of Barings. The UK merchant bank that went bankrupt that year after bets on the Nikkei went bad when Asian financial markets teetered.

1945 – The US Geological Survey provides some useful context:

“The March 11 earthquake was preceded by a series of large foreshocks over the previous two days, beginning on March 9th with an M 7.2 event approximately 40 km from the March 11 earthquake, and continuing with a further 3 earthquakes greater than M 6 on the same day.

The Japan Trench subduction zone has hosted 9 events of magnitude 7 or greater since 1973. The largest of these was an M 7.8 earthquake approximately 260 km to the north of the March 11 event, in December 1994, which caused 3 fatalities and almost 700 injuries. In June of 1978, an M 7.7 earthquake 35 km to the southwest caused 22 fatalities and over 400 injuries.”

1935 – Matthew Kennard, one of the FT’s Washington correspondents, is just off of the White House briefing on the tsunami:

Emergency response officials in the US said Friday there had been no reports of deaths in the country but tsunami warnings will still not be lifted until later in the day.

“Until they determine no further wave action, we are asking people to heed warning, stay away from water,” said Craig Fugate, administrator at the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He added that two search and rescue teams had been dispatched to Japan by USAID, which will lead the international response.

Dave Applegate, senior science advisor for earthquakes at the US geological survey, said it was a “low probability, high consequence event, which only happen every 200 hundred years or so.” But Friday’s earthquake off the coast of Japan was actually an aftershock to a 7.2 earthquake from two weeks ago and, according to officials, aftershocks could continue for months and even for years.

According to officials, in the US the largest waves hit Crescent City, California, where 8.1 feet waves destroyed docks and parts of the harbour.

1930 - The CEO of Aflac, which sells insurance in Japan, told Bloomberg the company only expects a small sales disruption from the disaster and that it is unlikely to be different from the Kobe quake in 1995.

1928: Japan has requested a “handful” of international search and rescue teams, a UN spokeswoman tells Reuters.

1917 – According to The San Jose Mercury News, tsunami waves are having an impact on the US west coast, destroying one of the docks of the Santa Cruz harbour.

1907 - Kyodo reports that another powerful quake has rocked Nagano Prefecture, a mountainous region in Honshu, with a magnitude of 6.6.

1901 – At a White House news conference, President Obama said there were no signs of radiation leaks at Japan’s nuclear power plants. He told reporters that the US Air Force was delivering a coolant to the plant that was damaged in the earthquake.

1859 – FT Alphaville collegue Gwen Robinson in Tokyo points out that the killer tsunami is giving a surprising boost to the yen:

“The resilience of the yen has taken even seasoned observers by surprise. In its Friday market update, Goldcore warns that market participants “appear to be seriously underestimating the risk posed by the megaquake to the Japanese economy and assets”.

1856 – John Boehner, US House majority leader, tweets that his thoughts and prayers are with the tsunami victims.

1851 - The Japan Times reports that Japan’s industry minister is assuring that any radiation that would be released would be low-level and that residents are safe.

1846 – Sheila Smith, a Japan expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, says that the Japanese government will be “sorely tested” by the disaster, after a “too little, too late” response to the 1995 earthquake in Kobe. Although she has been impressed with the response so far, she says that the impact on Japan’s economy will be devastating:

“The Nikkei stock market has already begun to dip precipitously in the world’s third largest economy. The long-term economic blow to a country already struggling to lower its budget deficit, which is now close to 10 percent of the GDP, will be significant. The 1995 earthquake in Kobe cost Japan $132 billion in damage and was the world’s most expensive natural disaster.”

1836 – Jonathan Soble, the FT’s correspondent in Tokyo, reports that the government is now saying that the Fukushima plant needs to relieve pressure building up in the reactor, and that in the process may release “a tiny amount” of radioactivity into the air.

1830 – Procter & Gamble, the US consumer goods company, said that it has suspended operations at one of its Japanese plants, potentially denting profits.

1823 - Japan’s chief cabinet minister told reporters late on Friday that the government is struggling to cool down one of its atomic facilities, according to CNN.

1815 – Huffington Post is keeping the political angle alive, noting that the Republicans’ budget proposal cuts tsunami relief and preparedness funding.

17:52 – The White House has organised a press call to explain how it is handling the emergency within the hour. Joining will be:

-FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate

-Dr. Dave Applegate, Sr. Science Advisor for Earthquakes and Geologic Hazards, US Geological Survey

-Eric Geist, Geophysicist, US Geological Survey

-Laura Furgione, Deputy Assistant Administrator, NOAA National Weather Service

-17:42 -A second train has been reported missing following the quake and tsunami in Japan, according to the AFP news agency.

1735[Alan Rappeport writing] -Eleven hours since the earthquake struck, death toll estimates are starting to reach the thousands. With the waves careening towards the US west coast, Oregon residents along the coast were advised to leave their homes before 7am local time. In California’s Orange County, local beaches were closed as residents braced for waves as tall as three feet.

The FT’s San Francisco correspondent reports that surfers in northern California are unfazed by high tide warnings. “Some surfers remained in the water in Santa
Cruz, which had been pinpointed for the most potential damage,” Joseph Menn reports. “Waves of up to five feet were predicted in surrounding areas.”

Earlier, President Barack Obama was briefed by his homeland security and emergency management advisors. The White House issued a statement imploring, “listen to the instructions of state and local officials”.

The markets have so far been taking news of the earthquake in stride. Although the FTSE All-World index is down 0.3 per cent, US markets shrugged off fears of aftershocks, focusing instead on easing oil prices and strong economic data.

1703 – Kyodo news agency says the death toll likely to rise to over 1,000.

1630 - Josh Noble, our Asia emerging markets editor, has just spotted this eerie video of skyscrapers swaying but still standing. a testimony to Japan’s architects, as one comment so aptly put it.

1617 - Until Friday afternoon the biggest risks for Japan’s economic recovery were high oil prices, uncertain export demand and a looming budget showdown between the faltering government and an emboldened opposition, writes Mure Dickie. The huge earthquake that hit off the coast of northeastern Miyagi prefecture was a harsh reminder of the more elemental dangers that can threaten economic activity on the crowded and seismically vulnerable Japanese archipelago.

1537 – The Fukushima nuclear plant is under control, says chief cabinet secretary Yukio Edano. However, he also urges his compatriots to brace for aftershocks every bit as serious as the initial quake.

1533 - Britain’s Queen Elizabeth sends a message of condolence to Japan’s emperor as the official death toll rises to 117 with hundreds more missing.

1523 - Gavyn Davies blogs on sad memories of the Kobe earthquake.

1518 - The FT’s Robert Cookson provides a useful overview of the economic damage so far and the response of the Bank of Japan.

1501 - Live feed from NHK-TV shows dramatic quake footage which is worth watching even if like me you cannot read the Japanese captions.

1456 - The Bank of Japan announces it will crunch its monetary policy committee meeting into just one day so that it starts and finishes next Monday – after pledging to provide enough liquidty to cope with the disaster as the yen put on a show of resilience.

1438 - The United Nations is ready to help Japan in any way necessary “at this very difficult time” says Ban Ki-moon, the UN’s secretary-general.

1436 - Video from Clive Cookson, our science editor, who assesses the impact of the earthquake.

1428 - Kyodo news agency says 60,000-70,000 people are evacuated to shelters in Sendai city.

1402 - OK eight hours on, time for a quick recap. At a magnitude of 8.9 on the Richter scale, this is the worst earthquake in Japan’s history and the sixth strongest the world has ever seen. At the time of writing, the official death toll was 74 people, with hundreds more dead. including 200 bodies that washed up on a street in Sendai near the epicentre in northern Japan. The quake has been felt not just around Japan: the tsunami it unleashed has already hit countries like Indonesia amd triggered warnings in at least 50 countries as far afield as Russia, the US, and Mexico. The Japanese authorities declared a nuclear state of emergency after the atomic power plant in Fukushima developed a mechanical failure in the system which cools the reactor after it was shut down in the quake. As defence forces were ordered to fly down to the area, authorities said that there had been no radiation leak. An evacuation of at least 2,000 people in the area was reportedly underway late on Friday. The nuclear plant is south of Sendai, the closest large city to the quake’s epicentre where oil storage tanks caught fire and the tsunami flooded the airport.

1303 - Japan has announced a 3km evacuation zone around Fukushima nuclear plant. The government earlier invoked the country’s 11-year-old nuclear emergency law for the first time ever – after water pumps at the plant failed, making it difficult to cool its six reactors after they shut down automatically during the quake.

1257 - A small tsunami has just hit the northern coast of Indonesia, says AP. It is unclear how much damage it has caused and people are still on alert because there could be more waves in the coming hours. And minor waves have now begun hitting the Philippines, according to AFP.

1248 - Useful posts from FT Alphaville, our markets blog, ranging from graphics comparing market reactions to this quake with previous ones, as well as the insurance angle to this disaster.

1233 - Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa declares a state of emergency across the Andean nation. Particularly at risk are the inhabitants of the Galapagos Islands – a popular tourist destination due to their world-renowned giant tortoises and a variety of endangered species.

1225 - As our “travel map” above shows, the countdown is under way in the countries expecting the tsunami to hit them. Hawaii expects to be hit at 3am local (1300 GMT/london time), with people queueing for petrol and building up food stocks. The US Navy has ordered all warships in Pearl Harbour to support rescue missions as needed.

1219 - The head of China’s Earthquake Administration says Chinese earthquake rescuers are on standby to go to Japan and join relief work if needed.China’s top political advisory body extended its condolences to Japan Friday. “We are deeply concerned with the well-being of the affected population and hope that they can surmount the difficult situation as soon as possible, said Zhao Qizheng, spokesman for the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, which is currently holding its annual plenary session in Beijing.

1217  - Mure Dickie, the FT’s bureau chief, and a veteran Japan watcher, is on the line with his account of the quake. He says this is going to be the worst disaster to hit Japan in many years.

1156 - I recommend Lindsay Whipp’s report of what it felt like to be on the receiving end of the earthquake from the office of the Tokyo Stock exchange chief. Markets worldwide have been affected, with European equities taking a hit but the yen climbing back after an initial shock.

1140 - A ship with 100 people on board was carried away in a tsunami, Xinhua News Agency reports, quoted by Bloomberg, without giving any more detail.

1120 - The earthquake is yet another challenge to Japan’s recovery but may provide a boost to the economy over the short term, Lawrence Summers, president emeritus of Harvard University and former director of the White House National Economic Council, tells CNBC.

1116 - Chilling video of tsunami wave engulfing Sendai airport

1102 - Japan declares an atomic power emergency but says no radiation has leaked. Jonathan Soble, one of our two  correspondents left in Tokyo, says the government invoked an 11-year-old nuclear emergency law for the first time after water pumps at an atomic plant in Fukushima failed, making it difficult to cool its six reactors after they shut down automatically during the quake. Yukio Edano, chief cabinet secretary, says no radiation had leaked from the facility.

1059 - The FT’s Mure Dickie and Lindsay Whipp are heading north to report on the recovery effort. Our correspondents are safe, awhile our office suffered some minor damage.

1056 - The government of Chile, which suffered its own devastating earthquake last year, issues a tsunami warning

1040 - The UK’s foreign office says it has established a helpline for individuals in the UK concerned about the safety of friends and relatives in Japan. The number is 020 7008 0000.

1039 - Russian authorities say they have evacuated some 11,000 residents from coastal areas on the Kuril islands in the Pacific. The islands are normally a source of tension between Moscow and Tokyo, which would like them back after they were seized by the Soviet Union in the final days of World War II.

1036 – Michiyo Nakamoto, one of our Tokyo correspondents, says email has become Japan’s main source of communication as phone lines are down all across the country and cell phone contact is severely disrupted. The internet is also available to large numbers of people without wireless access in areas where the electricity has been cut off.

1033 - Taiwan’s central weather bureau is saying that the tsunami has reached Taiwan but has not caused any major damage, according to AFP.

1031 - Sony halts operations at six factories in the Tohoku region of northeastern Japan .

1029 - Tokyo’s Narita Airport, Japan’s main international gateway, cancels all flights for the rest of the day.

1021 – The four Japanese nuclear power plants closest to  the earthquake have been safely shut down, the International Atomic Energy Agency is quoted as saying by Reuters.

1017 - The quake is  felt in some parts of Beijing, with some residents downtown and in suburban areas saying they noticed their hanging lights swaying and a rolling sensation in taller buildings, reports Jamil Anderlini, our bureau chief. In some parts of town residents even rush out of taller buildings after feeling the tremor. Mainland China is unlikely to be “obviously affected” by the quake, a  top Chinese seismological official tells Chinese state media.

1004 - A fire breaks out at Tohoku Electric Power Co’s Onagawa nuclear plant in northeastern Japan, while natural gas storage tanks burn at Cosmo oil refinery in Ichihara city (pictured here)

0937 - Tsunami warnings issued for at least 20 countries after Japan quake, says CNN, with a neat map to illustrate the scale of the devastation.

0927 – Tweets of tremors  in Hawaii

0915- Shawn Donnan, our world news editor who covered the devastating Boxing Day 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, says we have already seen some fundamental differences in the speed with which the news has got out and the warnings that have radiated out around the Pacific. It’s hard to know now exactly what kind of damage will see and this is clearly a tragic event but Japan, in contrast to the countries hit in 2004, has long been seen as a model for how to prepare for a tsunami. It has vast physical defences and the Pacific Ocean is host to an elaborate early warning system that we have seen in action today.

0910- Our science editor, Clive Cookson, has just come into the office. He says  the much smaller New Zealand earthquake shows a real danger stems from aftershocks which can destroy buildings damaged the first time round.