MEXICO CITY- Mexico's southern Oaxaca state was rattled by a moderate 5.9-magnitude earthquake Monday, causing evacuations but with no immediate reports of injuries or damage, the National Seismological Service said.

"It struck at 6:48 pm (0048 GMT Tuesday)... on the Oaxaca coast near the coastal municipality of Puerto Escondido," SSN staffer Jesus Perez told AFP.

"It was a sizeable quake, but not many people live in that area," he added.

The US Geological Survey put the quake at 5.7-magnitude and located its epicenter 103 kilometers (64 miles) southeast of Oaxaca city and at a depth of 35 kilometers (22 miles).

The SSN said the quake was felt in nearby states of Morelos and Puebla.

In Mexico City, 450 kilometers (280 miles) north of Oaxaca, the temblor caused some buildings to be evacuated as a precaution, said the capital's civil protection chief Elias Morelo.