China believes the Japanese people will overcome difficulty and rebuild their home after a 9-magnitude quake and an ensuing tsunami hit the country on March 11, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Thursday.

"At the request of the Japanese government, the Chinese government decided to provide 10,000 tons of gasoline and 10,000 tons of diesel as urgent and gratuitous aid, which have arrived in Japan recently," Jiang Yu said at a regular press briefing.

This was the latest batch of aid the Chinese government has offered to Japan after providing 30 million RMB (4.5 million U.S. dollars), Jiang added.

Some local governments and non-governmental organizations in China have also extended their consolations and provided different amounts of economic aid, Jiang said.

"China and Japan are neighbors and the two peoples have suffered natural disasters at different times. The consolation and support given mutually between the two governments and peoples shows the spirit of mutual help that two neighboring countries should have," Jiang said.

At least 5,178 people had been confirmed dead in Friday's massive earthquake and tsunami, with more than 8,600 others still missing, local media quoted Japanese police as saying early Thursday. The total death toll is expected to exceed 10,000.

One Chinese national has been confirmed dead in Japan following Friday's quake, Jiang said.

"The Chinese Foreign Ministry and the Chinese embassy and consulates in Japan are making every effort to evacuate Chinese citizens from hard-hit areas after the earthquake," Jiang said.

"Relevant information will be released and updated in time on the website of the Chinese embassy in Tokyo," she said.

The Chinese victim died in Ishinomaki city, Miyagi Prefecture, when the quake-triggered tsunami hit the area, the embassy said earlier.

The embassy and consulates are working to withdraw Chinese citizens in an orderly way, said the spokesperson.