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A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck south of the Philippine capital Manila early on Saturday (Jul 24). (Image: Twitter/Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology) - 

An earthquake of magnitude 6.7 struck south of the Philippine capital early on Saturday (Jul 24), the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said.

The agency said aftershocks were expected from the tectonic earthquake, which had a depth of 116 km.

Some residents in the capital region were awakened by the quake that lasted nearly a minute.

"The quake was deep so there is no tsunami," Renato Solidum, director of the Seismology agency, told DZRH radio station. "In Manila, the intensity 4.0 or 5.0 is strong but not yet destructive."

"It's very strong, we're alarmed," said police Major Ronnie Aurellano in Calatagan municipality, Batangas province, which is south of Manila and near the epicentre of the quakes.

"It's raining very hard here as well, but our people here are used to earthquakes. They're aware of the duck, hold and cover when there's an earthquake."

The epicentre is 16km southwest of Batangas province, Solidum said.

The Southeast Asian country is on the geologically active Pacific Ring of Fire and experiences frequent earthquakes//CNA