Factories and refineries shut amid devastation

CAR plants, electronics factories and refineries shut across large parts of Japan as the earthquake rocked the country, buckling roads and knocking out power to millions of homes and businesses.

Leaders of the ruling and opposition parties pushed for an emergency budget to help fund relief efforts after Prime Minister Naoto Kan asked them to “save the country,” Kyodo news agency.

The Bank of Japan, which has been struggling to boost the anaemic economy, said it would do its utmost to ensure financial market stability as air force jets roared toward the north-east coast to assess the damage from the biggest quake to hit the country in 140 years. The 8.9 magnitude quake sent shares skidding in Japan and elsewhere, adding to a slide in global stocks to their lowest level in nearly six weeks.