The US Geological Survey said the quake hit at a depth of 18.1 km (11.2 miles) at 1629 GMT - 137km (85 miles) from the port city of Bengkulu. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said there was no threat of a destructive widespread tsunami.

Indonesia has recently been struck by many quakes. More than 1,000 people were killed off Sumatra in September. The country sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, one of the world's most active areas for earthquakes and volcanoes. In December 2004, a 9.1-magnitude quake off the coast of Aceh triggered a tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed quarter of a million people in 13 countries including Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand.