CHILE – Masisa, a Chilean manufacturer of wooden panels with regional presence reported revenues from consolidated sales for the second quarter of 2019 (2Q-2019) of USD 97.6 million, equivalent to a decrease of USD 51.8 million compared to the second quarter of 2018.

A drop of almost 35 percent mainly explained by lower sales in Mexico, due to the partial sale of industrial assets in that country to Arauco, lower forest sales in Chile and Argentina, and the deconsolidation of the business in Venezuela.

Consolidated EBITDA reached USD 4.9 million, which represented a decrease of USD 16.7 million compared to the second quarter of 2018, explained by a lower contribution from Mexico, as a result of the lower asset base, lower forest EBITDA in Chile and Argentina, and lower EBITDA in the industrial commercial business of Chile due to lower average prices in the board business. The company also noted the efect of maintenance carried out during the second quarter of 2019 and the impact in the demand for product due to commercial conflict between the United States and China.

The net result (Profit/Loss), without the non-recurring effect of the sale of assets in Mexico, and forest restructuring and reorganization expenses, reached USD -6.2 million, which represents a USD 21.1 million decrease compared to the result of the second quarter of 2018. This decrease was mainly due to a lower variation of the biological asset in Argentina, lower contribution of EBITDA of the Mexican operation due to the sale of the complexes in Durango and Zitacuaro, and to a higher financial cost.

Masisa is focusing its efforts to strengthen its commercial strategy and maximize its profitability through what have been its most important competitive strengths and advantages, to raise the level of innovation, expand value-added alternatives in products and services, boost new integral solutions, and develop sales channels through new technologies with a less intensive business model in industrial capital.

In this context, the company has made divestments of the industrial assets of Argentina, Brazil and two of the three plants in Mexico, which allowed it to raise funds for about USD 420 million, which is expected to complement the sale of forestry assets announced to the market.

These divestments will allow Masisa to have a more solid balance, which will allow its commercial activity to be focused on businesses with greater added value in the Andean Region, Central America, the United States, Canada, Asia and other export markets, maintaining its productive capacity to supply the region from Chile.