U.S. stock index futures were little changed on Tuesday ahead of consumer price data and as the Federal Reserve prepared to begin its last policy-setting meeting of the year. * Although many in the market expect the Fed to begin to wind down its market-friendly $85 billion a month in asset purchases in March, some are betting on an earlier pullback due to a string of better-than-expected economic data. * The Fed has said its current policy is data-dependant, and some market participants believe the U.S. central bank will upgrade its estimates for economic activity after a two-day meeting that is set to begin later on Tuesday. * The U.S. Labor Department releases its November Consumer Price Index at 8:30 a.m. EST (1330 GMT).