Asian stocks struggled to advance as investors awaited US consumer price data that could dampen hopes for interest rate cuts this year, if inflation fails to decline significantly. The greenback was steady. The Nikkei fell 0.4%, the MSCI's Asian-Pacific index fell 0.3%, and the S&P 500, which fell 0.5% overnight, saw futures remain steady in Asia's morning trading. The current belief is that economists will expect the headlines of April's US consumer price data to remain steady, but sticky figures could derail investors' bets that interest rates will drop.