Samsonite International S.A. recently reported strong operating performance in the third quarter (ended Sept. 30) due to both revenue growth and ongoing operational efficiency trends, which enabled it to accelerate its deleveraging. We now expect the company's adjusted leverage to be close to 2x at the end of 2023 compared to our previous forecast of 2.7x. Therefore, we revised our outlook to positive from stable and affirmed all ratings, including our 'BB' issuer credit rating. The positive outlook reflects the potential for an upgrade if Samsonite continues to demonstrate sustained strong performance amid stable demand in the travel industry. The significant improvement in margins over pre-COVID levels continues to reflect management's successful execution of fixed-cost structure refinement, which included headcount
