MUMBAI, Nov 23 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee is expected to open slightly lower to the dollar on Wednesday on mixed Asian cues and the likelihood that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) may once again intervene.

The rupee is tipped to open at around 81.75-81.80 per U.S. dollar, compared to 81.6650 on Tuesday. State-run banks have been offering dollars at around 81.80-81.90 over the last two sessions, according to bankers and brokers.

While it is difficult to explain the likely presence of RBI just near the 82 level, it further narrows the near-term range from the trading point of view, a spot trader at a foreign bank said.

The rupee in the last two sessions has managed to turn around from the 81.80 to 81.90 levels, helped by dollar sales by state-run banks.

Asian currencies were mixed, with the Chinese yuan among the biggest laggards. The offshore yuan was down to 7.1476 against the dollar on concerns about a delay in reopening of the world's second-largest economy. The dollar index was slightly higher ahead of the minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve's November minutes. Near-maturity U.S. yields were little changed, with the 2-year hovering above 4.50%.

The Fed's minutes of the meeting will be scrutinized for discussions on the pace of future interest rate hikes. Fed Chair Jerome Powell following the November policy decision had said that while borrowing costs would need to rise further, the central bank might hike rates in smaller increments in the future.

Risk appetite was mostly positive in Asia after the overnight rally in U.S. equities. Oil prices were slightly higher.

KEY INDICATORS: ** One-month non-deliverable rupee forward at 81.92; onshore one-month forward premium at 16 paise ** USD/INR NSE November futures settled on Tuesday at 81.6950 ** USD/INR Nov forward premium at 2.0 paise ** Dollar index at 107.12 ** Brent crude futures at $88.48 per barrel ** Ten-year U.S. note yield at 3.76% ** SGX Nifty nearest-month futures up 0.4% at 18,353 ** As per NSDL data, foreign investors sold a net $149.3mln worth of Indian shares on Nov. 21

** NSDL data shows foreign investors sold a net $359.7mln worth of Indian bonds on Nov. 21 (Reporting by Nimesh Vora; Editing by Rashmi Aich)