At least 41 people have been killed in a bomb blast in a crowded area of the north-western Pakistani city of Peshawar, officials say.

More than 100 people have also been injured, a regional minister said.

Officials and witnesses said a vehicle laden with explosives had been detonated and destroyed near the city's Khyber Bazaar, the BBC reported

"We don't know if it was a remote controlled bomb or whether a suicide bomber was involved," said North West Frontier Province information minister Iftikhar Hussain.

TV footage showed what appeared to be the charred skeleton of a bus destroyed by the explosion. Many of the victims of the blast were thought to be passengers.

The remains of other vehicles were strewn in the road.