SYDNEY - A large magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck on Tuesday around 150 km (93 miles) south of the town of Rabaul in Papua New Guinea, the US Geological Survey said, setting off a tsunami warning within 300 km of the epicentre.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre issued the warning but said that a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami reaching as far as Hawaii was not expected.

The quake, downgraded from an initial estimate of 7.5, struck around 0140 GMT at a depth of 63 km and was the latest in a series of strong tremors to hit the region.

Susan McGrade, owner of the Rabaul Hotel in Rabaul, told Reuters that the quake was felt strongly in the city, with water splashing out of the swimming pool, but there were no immediate signs damage.