SYDNEY (AFP) - A strong 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck the Solomon Islands on Friday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said, but there were no immediate reports of damage.

The tremor, at a depth of 63km, hit at 10.40 pm local time, some 30km west of the city of Kirakira.

The USGS issued a "green alert", indicating there was a low likelihood of casualties and damage.

The Solomons are part of the "Ring of Fire", a zone of tectonic activity around the Pacific that is subject to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

In February last year, the islands were struck by a major 8.0 magnitude quake that generated small but deadly tsunami waves which washed away houses and reached as far away as Japan.

In 2007, a tsunami following an 8.0-magnitude earthquake killed at least 52 people in the Solomons and left thousands homeless. The quake lifted an entire island and pushed out its shoreline by dozens of metres.