At least eight people were killed and another injured in a knife attack in China on Friday, according to local media.

The incident was reported in Xiaochang county in the central Hubei province when a person "suffering a mental disorder" caused eight deaths and one injury, the Beijing-based daily Global Times reported.

The suspect has been detained by police. It is the third such attack reported this month.

The 53-year-old attacker surnamed Lu had previously been treated for mental illness, it added.

He is being held by police, who are investigating the attack.

The wounded person's injuries were not life-threatening, according to state news agency Xinhua.

Mass violent crime is relatively rare in China, which strictly prohibits citizens from owning firearms, but there has been a spate of stabbings in recent years.

Early this month, two people were killed while 21 others were injured in an alleged knife attack at a hospital in southwestern Zhenxiong county in Yunnan province.

This Tuesday, at least three people were killed and two others injured in a park in the Chenzhou city of the central Hunan province.