Quake hits China's remote northwest; no casualties

BEIJING (Reuters) - A strong earthquake hit China's remote northwestern region of Xinjiang early on Monday, but there were no immediate reports of casualties, state media said.

The quake, which the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) put at magnitude 5.7, happened at about midnight local time near China's western border with Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

According to the USGS's website, it occurred about 20 minutes after a stronger quake that struck nearby in Kyrgyzstan.

The official Chinese news agency Xinhua said that people in Kashgar, Xinjiang, some 180 km (110 miles) away, were able to feel the quake.

Earthquakes are fairly frequent in Xinjiang but most cause little or no damage in the sparsely populated region.

(Reporting by Jason Subler; Editing by Ken Wills and Valerie Lee)