ROME - At least four Chinese people were killed and six others were injured in a factory fire in central Italy on Sunday, local media reported.

The fire broke out around 7 am (0600 GMT) at a garment factory in the suburbs of the city of Prato, where there is a large concentration of Chinese businesses.

A dozen of people were trapped inside. Four of them were suffocated to death while two others were seriously injured and rushed to a hospital, according to ANSA news agency.

Some plasterboard cubicles in the factory collapsed in the fire, which were possibly used for worker's accommodation.

The death toll could possibly further rise.

The causes of the accident were still unclear. Firefighters and rescue teams were at work to put out the fire and search for some other people who were reported by Rai state television as missing.