Actions in Asia struggled for direction as investors waited for readings on US inflation for clues about the path of interest rates from the Federal Reserve.
An Asia Pacific action indicator there was little change, with gains in South Korea offset by losses in Hong Kong. In Japan, the blue-chip Nikkei-225 average stock index fluctuated as traders continued to assess the likelihood of an interest rate hike by the Bank of Japan, which will be the first since 2007.
