(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions
expressed are her own.)
By Robyn Mak
HONG KONG, March 22 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The $6 bln
luggage maker is planning another listing in addition to the
Asian financial hub where its shares have long suffered from low
liquidity. A resulting valuation uplift might be enough to
convince potential suitors including KKR and Carlyle that a
buyout could make sense.
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CONTEXT NEWS
Hong Kong-traded luggage maker Samsonite International said
on March 22 that it is planning to pursue a dual listing to
increase liquidity and reach more investors in other markets.
The company did not specify which stock exchanges will be
considered and says the "pursuit of a dual listing is at an
early stage".
Global buyout firms Carlyle and KKR have shown preliminary
interest in a potential buyout of Samsonite, Bloomberg reported
on March 7, citing unnamed sources. Other private equity firms
including Bain Capital and CVC Capital Partners are also making
early assessments on a potential bid, the report added.
Samsonite's Hong Kong shares were down 7% to HK$28.40 during
late morning trading on March 22.
(Editing by Antony Currie and Katrina Hamlin)
((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can
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