entering 2006 , earnings in the first quarter are ex- pected to improve compared with the 2005 fourth quar- ter due principally to higher average price realizations , reflecting announced price increases . product demand for the first quarter should be seasonally slow , but is ex- pected to strengthen as the year progresses , supported by continued economic growth in north america , asia and eastern europe . average prices should also improve in 2006 as price increases announced in late 2005 and early 2006 for uncoated freesheet paper and pulp con- tinue to be realized . operating rates are expected to improve as a result of industry-wide capacity reductions in 2005 . although energy and raw material costs remain high , there has been some decline in both natural gas and delivered wood costs , with further moderation ex- pected later in 2006 . we will continue to focus on fur- ther improvements in our global manufacturing operations , implementation of supply chain enhance- ments and reductions in overhead costs during 2006 . industrial packaging demand for industrial packaging products is closely correlated with non-durable industrial goods production in the united states , as well as with demand for proc- essed foods , poultry , meat and agricultural products . in addition to prices and volumes , major factors affecting the profitability of industrial packaging are raw material and energy costs , manufacturing efficiency and product industrial packaging 2019s net sales for 2005 increased 2% ( 2 % ) compared with 2004 , and were 18% ( 18 % ) higher than in 2003 , reflecting the inclusion of international paper distribution limited ( formerly international paper pacific millennium limited ) beginning in august 2005 . operating profits in 2005 were 39% ( 39 % ) lower than in 2004 and 13% ( 13 % ) lower than in 2003 . sales volume increases ( $ 24 million ) , improved price realizations ( $ 66 million ) , and strong mill operating performance ( $ 27 million ) were not enough to offset the effects of increased raw material costs ( $ 103 million ) , higher market related downtime costs ( $ 50 million ) , higher converting operating costs ( $ 22 million ) , and unfavorable mix and other costs ( $ 67 million ) . additionally , the may 2005 sale of our industrial papers business resulted in a $ 25 million lower earnings contribution from this business in 2005 . the segment took 370000 tons of downtime in 2005 , including 230000 tons of lack-of-order downtime to balance internal supply with customer demand , com- pared to a total of 170000 tons in 2004 , which included 5000 tons of lack-of-order downtime . industrial packaging in millions 2005 2004 2003 .
what was the industrial packaging profit margin in 2003
containerboard 2019s net sales totaled $ 895 million in 2005 , $ 951 million in 2004 and $ 815 million in 2003 . soft market conditions and declining customer demand at the end of the first quarter led to lower average sales prices during the second and third quarters . beginning in the fourth quarter , prices recovered as a result of in- creased customer demand and a rationalization of sup- ply . full year sales volumes trailed 2004 levels early in the year , reflecting the weak market conditions in the first half of 2005 . however , volumes rebounded in the second half of the year , and finished the year ahead of 2004 levels . operating profits decreased 38% ( 38 % ) from 2004 , but were flat with 2003 . the favorable impacts of in- creased sales volumes , higher average sales prices and improved mill operating performance were not enough to offset the impact of higher wood , energy and other raw material costs and increased lack-of-order down- time . implementation of the new supply chain operating model in our containerboard mills during 2005 resulted in increased operating efficiency and cost savings . specialty papers in 2005 included the kraft paper business for the full year and the industrial papers busi- ness for five months prior to its sale in may 2005 . net sales totaled $ 468 million in 2005 , $ 723 million in 2004 and $ 690 million in 2003 . operating profits in 2005 were down 23% ( 23 % ) compared with 2004 and 54% ( 54 % ) com- pared with 2003 , reflecting the lower contribution from industrial papers . u.s . converting operations net sales for 2005 were $ 2.6 billion compared with $ 2.3 billion in 2004 and $ 1.9 billion in 2003 . sales volumes were up 10% ( 10 % ) in 2005 compared with 2004 , mainly due to the acquisition of box usa in july 2004 . average sales prices in 2005 began the year above 2004 levels , but softened in the second half of the year . operating profits in 2005 de- creased 46% ( 46 % ) and 4% ( 4 % ) from 2004 and 2003 levels , re- spectively , primarily due to increased linerboard , freight and energy costs . european container sales for 2005 were $ 883 mil- lion compared with $ 865 million in 2004 and $ 801 mil- lion in 2003 . operating profits declined 19% ( 19 % ) and 13% ( 13 % ) compared with 2004 and 2003 , respectively . the in- crease in sales in 2005 reflected a slight increase in de- mand over 2004 , but this was not sufficient to offset the negative earnings effect of increased operating costs , unfavorable foreign exchange rates and a reduction in average sales prices . the moroccan box plant acquis- ition , which was completed in october 2005 , favorably impacted fourth-quarter results . industrial packaging 2019s sales in 2005 included $ 104 million from international paper distribution limited , our asian box and containerboard business , subsequent to the acquisition of an additional 50% ( 50 % ) interest in au- gust 2005. .