EMERGING MARKETS-Latam FX slips as firm dollar weighs; Peru's rate decision on tap

* Brazil's retail sales unexpectedly rise in Feb to 24-year high * Colombia economy will grow 3.4% in 2025, says cenbank chief * Mexico Feb industrial production falls 0.1% vs Jan * Latam stocks down 0.7%, currencies off 0.3% By Bansari Mayur Kamdar April 11 (Reuters) - Latin American currencies eased on Thursday as investors assessed a mixed U.S. inflation picture this week, while Peru's sol bucked weakness in regional peers ahead of the country's central bank decision on interest rates later in the day. The MSCI index for Latam currencies slipped 0.3% by 1442 GMT, after shedding more than 1% in the previous session as the dollar soared on hotter-than-expected U.S. consumer prices data. The dollar index extended gains by 0.3% after briefly retreating following weaker-than-expected U.S. producer prices print. The Peruvian sol rose 0.5% against the dollar, ahead of the rate decision for the world's No. 2 copper producer after the monetary authority unexpectedly held its benchmark interest rate at 6.25% in March. "We expect the MPC (monetary policy committee) to cut its policy rate by 25 bp to 6.0%," said economists at Goldman Sachs. "The MPC implied that it retained its easing bias, as it lowered the marginal reserve requirement in local currency by 50 bp to 5.50% (it had remained fixed since May 2022)." The Brazilian real eased 0.2% against the greenback. Data showed retail sales in Brazil rose unexpectedly in February to their highest level in at least 24 years. Chile's peso and the Colombian peso fell 0.3% each against a strengthening dollar. The Colombian central bank's technical team estimated the Andean country's economy will grow 3.4% in 2025, board chief Leonardo Villar told a pension conference. Colombian Mines and Energy Minister Andres Camacho said it will look to loosen regulation on gas exploration and supply to meet the South American nation's needs in 2026 and 2027. The Arrecife gas field could produce 20 million to 30 million cubic feet per day between 2025 and 2026, Ecopetrol CEO Ricardo Roa said. Shares of the state-owned oil company rose 1.1%. Broadly, stocks in Colombia slid 0.5%, while Latin American shares fell 0.7%. Mexico's peso eased 0.3% against the dollar. Data showed Mexican industrial output fell 0.1% in February from January and was 3.3% higher year-over-year. Elsewhere, OPEC predicted robust fuel use in the summer months and stuck to its forecast for relatively strong growth in global oil demand in 2024, while saying there was a chance the world economy could do better than expected this year. HIGHLIGHTS: ** Uruguay central bank cuts interest rate by 50 bp to 8.50% ** Morgan Stanley raises China's 2024 growth forecast to 4.8% ** March CPI dips in Hungary and Romania, services prices stay hot ** S.Korean shares recoup early losses despite reform doubts ** Ethiopia faces tough devaluation decision to secure IMF bailout Key Latin American stock indexes and currencies at 1442 GMT: Stock indexes Latest Daily % change MSCI Emerging Markets 1053.61 -0.4 MSCI LatAm 2509.71 -0.66 Brazil Bovespa 127199.37 -0.67 Mexico IPC 56566.27 -0.12 Chile IPSA 6689.95 0.03 Argentina MerVal 1240378.87 0.521 Colombia COLCAP 1391.56 -0.46 Currencies Latest Daily % change Brazil real 5.0857 -0.16 Mexico peso 16.4773 -0.41 Chile peso 957.2 -0.36 Colombia peso 3819.27 -0.37 Peru sol 3.717 -0.35 Argentina peso (interbank) 865.5000 0.00 Argentina peso (parallel) 980 2.04 (Reporting by Bansari Mayur Kamdar in Bengaluru; Editing by Richard Chang)