A strong tremor struck on Friday the Italian town that will host next week's G8 summit of world leaders, shaking buildings, setting off car alarms and startling residents who lived through April's deadly quake.

Italian authorities said the tremor measured 4.1 in magnitude, strong enough to send some residents of L'Aquila running from their homes and into the streets, but causing no major damage.

April's quake killed nearly 300 people and left more than 60,000 homeless.

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has given assurances that G8 facilities that will host heads of state for the July 8-10 summit can withstand a major earthquake.