Gome Group said it is in talks with overseas investors to sell a stake in its Hong Kong-listed electronics retailing unit, China's biggest.

"We need long-term strategic investors rather than short- term ones," said Gome President Chen Xiao in a telephone interview on Friday. The retailer is aiming to complete the sale this year, he said, declining to give further details or name the potential investors.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc, Carrefour SA and other global retailers opened outlets in the world's fourth-largest economy, attracted by a retail market that may triple to 20 trillion yuan by 2020, according to the Chinese government estimates. Retail sales grew 14 percent to $770 billion in 2006, after expanding by an average 11 percent in the decade to 2005.

Gome is targeting annual revenue of 250 billion yuan by 2012, Chen said in an e-mailed statement earlier on Friday. The sales target is equivalent to the 2006 sales of Best Buy Co, the largest such chain in the US.

Chen bought 18 million shares of the company in February, raising his stake in the Beijing-based retailer to 13.5 percent. Executive Lisa Du also bought more Gome shares, raising her stake in the company. The shares were bought on the open market and from Morgan Stanley, which reported on March 8 that it sold 587,930 Gome shares.

"We believe that Gome's shares are undervalued because of the plans we have for the company," Chen said in an interview on March 21. "We have a very clear vision for Gome and we're optimistic of the prospects. That's why we used the opportunity to buy when Morgan Stanley's management team decided to pare its investment in Gome."

The retailer expects to double market share to 25 percent of China's 1 trillion yuan consumer electronics market by 2012, from 12 percent now, the statement said. In November, the Beijing-based retailer forecast sales of 200 billion yuan by 2010.

Gome, which has more than 800 stores in China's 200 cities, will build 30 logistics hubs nationwide in the next five years to cut transport costs and improve margins, according to Friday's statement. Owned by China's richest man Huang Guangyu, Gome is the parent of Hong Kong-listed Gome Electrical Appliances Holdings Ltd.

Best Buy last year bought control of Jiangsu Five Star Appliance Co, China's fourth-largest electronics retailer, and plans to open as many as 26 stores in the country over the next year, the company said on February 22.

Gome bought rival China Paradise for $675 million last year as part of consolidation in a market with more than 30,000 appliance retailers.