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SANTIAGO, Chile, Oct. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- MASISA S.A. (NYSE:MYS) (hereinafter referred to as "Masisa" or "the Company"), a leading wood board for furniture manufacturing and marketing company in Latin America, today posted its consolidated financial statements for the third quarter of 2007. Q3'07 HIGHLIGHTS -- Sales in the third quarter of 2007 were 6.3% up on the same period of 2006, amounting to US$247.7 million, driven by higher prices of wood boards for furniture (MDF and PB), which offset the lower sales of MDF mouldings, finger joint mouldings and sawn wood, products from the solid wood business unit, mainly due to the slowdown of the housing sector in the United States. -- The gross margin on sales improved, increasing from 24.9% to 25.1% compared with the same quarter in 2006, mainly driven by the Company's ability to transfer more than its cost increases into prices, especially in the wood boards business. Also, the Company has been successful in its commercial efforts of opening new markets and re-routing exports that were initially destined to the United States towards other markets, this is especially true for OSB boards' exports. -- The ratio, of sales and administrative expenses to sales, increased in the third quarter of 2007, accounting for 13.5% of sales, which was higher than the third quarter of 2006 when they accounted for 12.9 % of sales. This was mainly due to an increase in commercial activity along with higher logistic costs. -- Operating income increased by US$0.7 million (+2.6%) when compared to the same quarter in 2006, amounting to US$28.8 million, boosted by a higher sales margin (on account of the successful commercial efforts), thus offsetting the higher sales and administrative expenses. -- Third quarter net income was US$7.0 million, which was a 49.5% decrease on the same quarter of 2006. This lower net income is explained by (i) lower non-operating results and (ii) higher income taxes due to increased deferred taxes, especially in Brazil. Regarding income taxes, it is worth noting that from the total income tax expenses accounted during the third quarter of 2007 (US$ 10.9 million), less than 25% of such expenses correspond to cash payments (US$ 2.4 million). -- The Company had a sound operating performance, which was reflected by an operating working capital to sales ratio for the last trailing twelve month period ended on September 30 of 2007, of 31.8%, thus exhibiting an improvement when compared with the same period ended on September 30, 2006 when it was 36.1%. -- In September 2007, Masisa's Board approved the construction of an MDP plant (Medium Density Particleboard) in the city of Montenegro, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil. This investment includes (i) a 550,000 annual cubic meter production plant and (ii) a melamine line with a capacity of 220,000 annual cubic meters. The total amount of the investment is approximately US$ 119 millions. Beginning of operations is scheduled for late 2009. With this new investment, Masisa consolidates its market leadership in the wood boards for furniture industry in Latin America and completes its product mix in the Brazilian market. -- In October 2007, the new MDF plant in Cabrero (Chile) initiated the commercial production of boards. The plant will add an additional production capacity of 340,000 annual cubic meters, which represents a 15% of additional wood boards total production capacity. This plant will positively impact the cash flow generation capacity and Masisa's results by benefiting from the current good market momentum that is experiencing the wood boards for furniture industry in the Latin American region, both in terms of price and demand. Quarter ended Sep 30, Dec 31, Mar 31, Jun 30, Sep 30, 2006 2006 2007 2007 2007 (in millions of US$, except per share information in %) Sales 233.0 222.7 216.5 241.9 247.7 Gross margin 58.1 53.9 53.5 57.7 62.2 % over sales (2) 24.9% 24.2% 24.7% 23.9% 25.1% Selling and Administrative Expenses (30.1) (35.8) (30.8) (32.6) (33.4) % over sales (2) -12.9% -16.1% -14.2% -13.5% -13.5% Operating Income 28.0 18.1 22.7 25.1 28.8 %over sales (2) 12.0% 8.1% 10.5% 10.4% 11.6% EBITDA (3) 44.9 35.4 39.0 43.5 46.2 %over sales 19.3% 15.9% 18.0% 18.0% 18.7% Net Income for the Period 13.8 10.4 3.2 16.3 7.0 Earnings per Share (US$) 0.0024 0.0018 0.0006 0.0029 0.0012 Earnings per ADS (US$) (1) 0.12 0.09 0.03 0.14 0.06 (1): An ADS equals 50 common shares. (2): As % of Sales for the quarter. (3): EBITDA represents Operating Income + Depreciation + Amortization + Depletion. For further information on Masisa's Q3'07 results please go to http://www.masisa.com/ Masisa S.A Announces Conference Call to Discuss Q3 2007 Results Masisa S.A. (NYSE:MYS) a leading Latin American producer of wood boards for furniture, will hold its quarterly conference call on Thursday, November 8, 2007 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time. The Company will discuss results for the quarter ended September 30, 2007. To participate on the conference call, please dial 866-510-0711 (domestic) or 617-597-5379 (international) five to ten minutes before the call and reference the pass code 12546756. A simultaneous live Webcast of the call will be available over the Internet at http://www.masisa.com/, under the Investor Relations heading. A replay of the call will be available beginning on Thursday, November 8, 2007 at 11:00 a.m. (ET) by dialing 888-286-8010 (domestic) or 617-801-6888 (international) and providing the following replay code: 96282225. In addition, the Webcast will be available on the Company's web site at http://www.masisa.com/. Forecasts and Estimates This press release may contain forecasts, which are different statements from historical facts or current conditions, and include the management's current vision and estimates of future circumstances, industry conditions and the Company's performance. Some forecasts may be identified by the use of terms such as "may," "should," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," "expects," "plans," "intends," "forecasts" and other similar expressions. Statements about future market share, projected future competitive strengths, the implementation of significant operating and financial strategies, the direction of future operations, and the factors or trends affecting financial conditions, liquidity, or operating income are examples of forecasts. Such statements reflect the current management vision and are subject to various risks and uncertainties. There is no guarantee that the expected events, trends or results will actually occur. These statements are made based on many assumptions and factors, including general economic and market conditions, industry conditions and operating factors. Any changes in such assumptions or factors could lead to the current results of Masisa, and the projected Company activities, to materially differ from current expectations. Internet: http://www.masisa.com/ DATASOURCE: Masisa S.A. CONTACT: Thomas de la Mare, Head of Investor Relations, +56-2-350-6118, , or Rodrigo Hahn, Investor Relations, +56-2-707- 8608, , or Investor Relations, +56-2-350-6038, , all of Masisa S.A Web site: http://www.masisa.com/

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