TAIPEI - An undersea earthquake measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale rattled Taiwan on Tuesday, the central weather bureau said, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.
The tremor struck at 11:10 am (0310 GMT) with its epicenter located 85 kilometers (50 miles) east of the coastal city of Hualien. It occurred at a depth of 17 kilometers.
The US Geological Survey measured the quake at a magnitude of 5.2.
Two people were killed and at least 42 injured last month when a powerful 7.1-magnitude quake rocked southern Taiwan. The quake sparked telecoms chaos across Asia, with Internet and telephone connections disrupted for days.
Taiwan, which lies near the junction of two tectonic plates, is regularly shaken by earthquakes. The country's worst, a 7.6-magnitude quake, killed some 2,400 people in September 1999.
01/16/2007 04:16 GMT