Japanese public broadcaster NHK said the missile was fired from the east coast of North Korea and flew about 100 kilometers (62 miles) until it fell into the sea.

Jiji Press said the test came at about 8:00 am (2300 GMT Saturday) and only consisted of one missile. According to Kyodo News, Japan was informed of the test by the US military and cabinet members were told to prepare for an emergency.

A Japanese foreign ministry official said only that Tokyo had "unconfirmed reports" about a missile, while a South Korean defense ministry official said Seoul had no information.

A US military spokeswoman in Japan said the US forces do not discuss intelligence matters, though a senior White House official said Washington was monitoring developments.

"They've tested missiles before. This is not the first time of alleged testing of missiles," said White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card, speaking on the Fox News Sunday television program.

"We know what their intent is and we're trying to keep a good close eye on them," Card said.

"I think they're looking to kind of be bullies in the world... "

North Korea shocked the world in August 1998 by firing a long-range Taepodong-1 missile with a range of up to 2,000 kilometers over Japan into the Pacific Ocean, claiming it was a satellite launch.

Short-range missile launches have been more routine, but have often been timed to send signals. North Korea's last high-profile launches were in March 2003 when it lobbed two short-range missiles into the Sea of Japan coinciding with the inauguration of South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun.

Japanese and US media have reported that North Korea is preparing an underground nuclear test, with Kyodo News saying it could come as early as June.

North Korea has in recent months sent out a series of defiant statements including one in March saying it would no longer be bound by a moratorium on testing long-range missiles.

North Korea imposed the moratorium unilaterally in September 1999 and leader Kim Jong-Il confirmed it in a September 2002 summit in Pyongyang with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

North Korea's official media on Saturday said no resolution on its nuclear ambitions would be possible under the presidency of George W. Bush, calling him a "hooligan bereft of any personality as a human being, to say nothing of stature as president of a country".

Bush had in a televised news conference Thursday described Kim as a "dangerous person" and said Washington was developing a "comprehensive strategy" to deal with North Korea, including work on a missile defense system.

Pyongyang has accused Washington of seeking to topple its government and announced on February 10 that it possesses nuclear weapons to defend itself.

In April, North Korea said it had shut down its nuclear power plant at Yongbyon and was preparing to reprocess the plant's spent fuel, a move that could result in the production of enough plutonium to build up to six more nuclear bombs.

Little progress has been made in efforts to end the nuclear standoff since it erupted in October 2002.

The last six-nation talks on the crisis -- which involve the two Koreas, China, the United States, Japan and Russia -- were held last June and US envoy Christopher Hill on a tour of Asia last week was downbeat on chances for an early resumption of dialogue.

Japan is locked in a separate standoff with North Korea over the communist state's abductions of Japanese nationals up to the 1980s.

North Korea admitted during the 2002 summit with Koizumi that it had abducted Japanese nationals to train its spies and sent back five survivors in exchange for a Japanese aid package.

But Japan believes that North Korea has not come clean on the fate of other kidnap victims and has suspended the aid.

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