April 13 (Reuters) - Australian shares struggled for a direction on Thursday, as investor sentiment oscillated between gauging a cooler-than-expected U.S. inflation reading and potential recessionary risks arising from stress in the banking sector. Inflation data showed consumer prices in U.S. barely rose in March, raising hopes that the Federal Reserve could pause monetary tightening following a 25-basis-point rate hike next month. However, minutes of the meeting showed several policymakers last month considered pausing interest rate hikes after the failure of two regional banks and projected a "mild recession" starting later this year, with a recovery in 2024-2025.