Samsonite says strong Tumi boosts first half sales; shares rise

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Luggage maker Samsonite International SA posted a 16.6 percent growth in first-half net sales, helped by strong performance of its high-end Tumi brand, sending its shares up 8 percent on Thursday.The world's largest luggage firm said late on Wednesday its first-half net sales rose to $1.85 billion from $1.59 billion a year earlier.Shares of Samsonite, which have been under pressure since May after a short-seller attacked its accounting practices, rose as much as 8.5..