BEIJING - A 4.5-MAGNITUDE earthquake struck southwest China late on Saturday, the US Geological Survey said, with local media reporting some material damage.

The quake hit at 8.41pm in the border area between the provinces of Yunnan and Guizhou, at a depth of 10 kilometres (six miles), the USGS said.

The Guizhou Metropolitan News, a local newspaper, said there were no immediate reports of injuries, but described unspecified damage to buildings.

An 8.0-magnitude earthquake which struck Sichuan province, also in southwest China, 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