BEIJING - A 5.0-MAGNITUDE earthquake struck southwest China early on Thursday, shaking an area that was hit by last year's Sichuan disaster, the US Geological Survey said.

The quake hit at 2.23 am (12.23 am Singapore time), 90 kilometres northwest of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, at a depth of just eight kilometres, the USGS said.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage.

The 8.0-magnitude Sichuan earthquake on May 12 last year was the worst in a generation in China, flattening entire towns and leaving more than 87,000 people dead or missing. -- AFP