The Rupee opened little changed on Wednesday, as softer U.S. inflation data tempers expectations of a near-term Federal Reserve ?rate hike, offseting pressure from a continued rally in crude oil ?prices. The rupee has come under significant pressure following renewed U.S.-Iran hostilities, which has spurred ?a jump in oil prices. Brent crude was perched near $86 a barrel ?in Asia trading, well above the roughly $70 level seen just two ?weeks ago. Tuesday's session underscored the rupee's fragility, with the currency weakening past the ?96-per-dollar level despite dollar sales by the central bank in the spot and ?non-deliverable forward markets. The underlying bias on the rupee has turned considerably weaker over the last two sessions, a currency trader at a bank said. The probability of a 25-basis-point Fed rate increase at the July meeting fell to 16.6% from 41.7% a day before, per ?CME Group's FedWatch tool. ?For September, markets ?priced in a 59.8% chance of a hike, down from 75.1% on Monday. Expectations of Fed hikes had strengthened in recent ?days amid the escalation in the Middle East conflict and ?the resulting ?rise in oil prices. The June inflation data, however, moderated those concerns and provided support for risk assets and Asian currencies. The dollar extended its weakness on Wednesday after tumbling from ?a two-week high, as softer-than-expected inflation data curbed bets on a near-term Federal Reserve rate ?hike, despite concerns that elevated oil prices could fuel inflation risks. Against the yen , the dollar fetched 162.08, down 0.1%. The euro and the British pound each gained 0.1%, trading at $1.1433 and $1.3401, respectively. The New Zealand dollar was also well bid at $0.5819, hovering around its strongest level in ?a month, and the Australian dollar was steady at $0.6983. The U.S. dollar index , which measures the currency against a ?basket of six peers, was a shade weaker at 100.81. It fell 0.35% in ?the previous session for its biggest pullback in nearly two weeks, which dragged the index down from the highest level since ?July 2. Oil extended gains on Wednesday as President Donald Trump reimposed a naval blockade on all Iranian ports and Tehran launched strikes on U.S. ?infrastructure in the region. Brent futures climbed 99 cents, or 1.2%, to $85.72 a barrel at ?0400 GMT. West Texas Intermediate futures gained 64 cents, or 0.8%, to $79.98 a barrel.......