Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI) and AK Steel Corp. were in unison in reporting improved flat-rolled stainless steel sales in the second quarter, but management at the two companies differ somewhat on the pace of further improvements.

ATI expects to see reduced stainless flat-rolled sales in the third quarter, with customers reluctant to buy amid raw material price volatility, L. Patrick Hassey, ATI's chairman, president and chief executive officer, said during the Pittsburgh-based company's second-quarter conference call. Typically, service centers cut their purchases as prices fall for fear of a devaluation of their inventory if prices fall further.

Stainless flat-rolled base prices will soften in the third quarter, along with surcharges, according to Richard Harshman, ATI's executive vice president of...