(Updates with OFZ auction results) MOSCOW, Aug 4 (Reuters) - The Russian rouble steadied on Wednesday, shrugging off a decline in oil prices and supported by demand related to auctions of OFZ treasury bonds that have regained popularity with foreign investors. The rouble has been regaining ground gradually over the last month as concerns about more Western sanctions against Russia have eased, oil prices have mostly held firm and the central bank’s 100-basis-point rate hike increased demand for Russian assets. At 1417 GMT, the rouble was unchanged on the day at 72.95 , off its session high of 72.70. Versus the euro, it was up 0.1% at 86.51, after touching 86.2750, its strongest since July 1. The rouble has received support from inflows of foreign funds to the Russian debt market. The finance ministry raised a cumulative 75.3 billion roubles ($1.03 billion) by auctioning 10- and 20-year OFZ bonds on Wednesday, while demand reached 145 billion roubles. Four weeks ago, when the finance ministry auctioned the same papers before Russia’s rate hike on July 23, it raised 15.4 billion roubles. “We think the rouble might firm to 72.5 versus the dollar today amid strong foreign demand for OFZs and global weakness in the dollar,” Sberbank CIB said in a note. The weekly influx of foreign money into OFZs more than doubled last week and reached a fresh 2021 high as the central bank raised rates sharply. This helped the rouble to weather the finance ministry’s announcement on Wednesday that it will increase daily FX buying for state reserves as well as a decline in prices for oil, one of Russia’s most important exports. Brent crude oil fell 1.5% at $71.33 a barrel, as the spread of the coronavirus Delta variant in top consuming countries outweighed the impact of Mideast geopolitical tensions and a fall in U.S. inventories. Russian stock indexes, however, climbed. The dollar-denominated RTS index rose 0.6% to 1,646.8 points. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index was 0.5% higher at 3,813.7 points, moving towards its record peak of 3,915 hit last month. For Russian equities guide see For Russian treasury bonds see ($1 = 72.8100 roubles) (Reporting by Andrey Ostroukh; additional reporting by Vladimir Abramov Editing by Ramakrishnan M., Mark Potter and Barbara Lewis) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.