Major earthquakes will not likely hit China again in near future, the China Seismological Bureau (CSB) said?on Monday.

Experts with the CSB concluded late on Monday night that apart from the regions near the epicenter of Monday's earthquake, which is located 31.0 degrees north latitude and 103.4 degrees east longitude, the rest of Sichuan Province and the country is not likely to be hit again soon.

The CSB has stengthened earthquake monitoring, the bureau said.

Monday's quake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale jolted Wenchuan County, Sichuan Province at 2:28 p.m., resulting in more than 8,500 deaths reported so far.

Tremors were also reported in over half of China's provinces and municipalities, the China Seismological Bureau said.

(Xinhua News Agency May 13, 2008)