Earthquake jolts Indonesia's Bali island

Jakarta (dpa) - A earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale struck the southern part of the Indonesian province of Bali on Friday, but there were no reports of damage or injuries, according to a United States Geological Survey (USGS) report.

The moderate quake struck about 02:26 pm (0626 GMT) at a depth of 45 kilometres. The quake's epicentre was about 140 kilometres south- west of Denpasar, the provincial capital, the report said, or 945 kilometres south-east of Indonesia's capital Jakarta.

Friday's earthquake was the latest to strike Indonesia in recent months. On December 18, a 5.7-magnitude earthquake struck parts of West and North Sumatra provinces, killing at least four people, damaging hundreds of homes and triggering landslides.

On December 26, 2004, a 9-magnitude quake generated a tsunami that left some 177,000 people dead or missing in Aceh province on the northern end of Sumatra.

Indonesia is the world's largest archipelago nation, located in the Pacific volcanic belt known as the Ring of Fire, where earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are common.