BEIJING - AN AFTERSHOCK of magnitude 4.8 hit southwest China on early Sunday, shaking a region that was devastated in the Wenchuan earthquake in May, the US Geological Survey and Chinese state media reported.

The aftershock hit at 6.59 am, 75km north of Mianyang city in Sichuan province, the USGS said. The USGS uses the Moment Magnitude scale, which is more accurate than the Richter scale.

China's Xinhua news agency reported a tremour measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale, apparently referring to the same quake. It did not immediately carry any reports of casualties.

The quake occurred at a depth of just 10km, the USGS said.

The aftershock happened just over six months after an 8.0-magnitude quake hit Sichuan, flattening entire towns and leaving more than 87,000 people dead or missing. -- AFP