US sheet  steel  prices held steady Wednesday but buyers and sellers said that a report of

low  buyer inventories suggests that prices, which have been showing signs of weakness, c

ould get support from a tight market. 

The Metals Service Center Institute said that US service centers carried 2.0 months of flat-r

olled  supply at the end of January, down from 2.7 months in December and matching a rec

ent low ratio seen in June 2016. 

One service center source said he had strong shipments in January, and that even though 

shipments  have slowed in February, he expects that business will accelerate in the next fe

w weeks with the expected uptick in seasonal demand. 

"With the service center inventories low, everyone is going to go back to the trough," he sa

id, adding he expects prices to increase in the second quarter. 

The  service  center  source said he has not needed to buy lately. He saw hot-rolled coil at 

$620/st, but  was not sure about cold-rolled coil. A mill quoted him $860/st, which he said w

as a shock. "I don't know anybody who bought at that level," he said.