BEIJING, Apr 16 (AP) -- A moderate earthquake rattled China's far west on Monday, but no injuries or damage were reported, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

The magnitude 4.9 temblor struck Wuqia, a county in the Xinjiang region, at 6:20 a.m. (2220 GMT Sunday), Xinhua said, citing the local earthquake monitoring agency.

The sparsely populated area is prone to seismic activity, it said.