Mexico City/Washington  - Hurricane Jimena became a dangerous category 4 storm on Sunday as it took aim at Mexico's Pacific coast, forecasters said.

The US National Hurricane Centre in Miami warned that the storm was threatening western Mexico and the Baja Peninsula. Jimena was moving parallel to the coast some 440 kilometres south-southwest of Cabo Corrientes, Mexico and 770 kilometres south-southeast of the Baja Peninsula at 2100 GMT, the centre said.

Winds were reaching sustained speeds of 220 kilometres per hour, and the storm could strengthen further.

Authorities in the Mexican states of Jalisco, Colima and Michoacan had issued storm warnings.

The storm could hit the Baja Peninsula Monday evening, Mexican forecasters said. (dpa)