The Malaysian parent of Hong Kong-listed Parkson Retail Groyp, a major department store operator in the Mainland is seeking to reduce its majority stake by selling up to 1.33 billion HK dollars (171 million US dollars) worth of shares to institutional investors, The Standard reported. Parkson operates about 40 department stores in prime locations in 26 mainland cities. It also provides consultancy and management services, research and development of computer software, and investment holding. Last November, the company raised about 1.9 billion HK dollars (238 million US dollars) from its initial public offering in Hong Kong. Earlier this month, Parkson reported first-half results showing 84 percent growth year-over-year in net profit to 196 million yuan (24.5 million US dollars). China's consumer sector has become one of the hottest since last year, with mainland consumption stocks traded at more than 30 times forecast price-to-earnings, analysts said. A fund manager said economic growth in the mainland will be maintained at 7 to 8 percent, supporting retail sales growth.