MUMBAI, Sept 12 Reuters The Indian rupee was little changed on Thursday, holding above its lifetime low, supported by likely intervention from the Reserve Bank of India RBI amid weakness in most Asian currencies.

The rupee was at 83.9725 against the U.S. dollar as of 1020 a.m. IST, nearly unchanged from its close at 83.9775 in the previous session. It hit an alltime low of 83.9850 last week.

U.S. consumer prices increased marginally in August, but underlying inflation showed some stickiness, dimming hopes of the Federal Reserve cutting rates by an outsized 50 basis points bps next week.

That weighed on Asian currencies. But the rupee held its ground, supported by staterun banks39; dollar sales, most likely on behalf of the RBI, traders said.

The rupee continues to hold steady within a welldefined range as the RBI remains active in managing it, Amit Pabari, managing director at FX advisory firm CR Forex said.

The RBI has routinely intervened over the last month to help the rupee remain above the key psychological support level of 84.

There is a slight chance of a dip below 84 over the next few days but a runaway depreciation is quite unlikely given the central bank39;s grip on the currency, a trader at a foreign bank said.

Meanwhile, dollarrupee forward premiums dipped, with the 1year implied yield down 2 bps at 2.23, retreating from a 16month peak in the previous session.

U.S. jobless claims data and wholesale inflation data due later in the day will be in focus…