YANGON, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- A moderate earthquake of 5.2 magnitude hit Monywa, Myanmar's northwestern part in the early hours of Friday, the Meteorology and Hydrology Department told Xinhua.

With a depth of 77 km, the earthquake struck at 02:53:34 hours local time (20:23:34 GMT).

The epicenter was 185.6 km west of Mandalay and 88 km southwest of Monywa.

No further reports about the casualties are immediately available.