HAMBURG, April 9 (Reuters) - Global palm oil stocks at the end ofcalendar year 2002 will fall to a four-year low of 3.14 million tonnes,Hamburg-based newsletter Oil World estimates.This compares to 3.75 million tonnes at the end of 2001.The reason is slowing palm oil production growth and risingconsumption. The newsletter estimates global 2002 output at 23.68 milliontonnes against 23.36 million tonnes in 2001.The 300,000 tonne rise in 2002 compares to average annual rises of 2.1million tonnes in the last three years, it said.Background is the downturn of the biological yield cycle of palm treesafter the strong production growth in the past few years plusbelow-average growth in Malaysia's area of mature trees."This slowdown will considerably squeeze export availability and willalso lead to a substantial reduction in world palm oil stocks," Oil Worldsaid.It expects main inventory reductions to take place in Malaysia, whereit estimates stocks on December 31, 2002, at 900,000 tonnes against1,214,000 tonnes on December 31, 2001.Global 2002 palm oil consumption is set to rise strongly to 24.59million tonnes from 23.62 million tonnes in 2001, it forecast.

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