* Palm oil down 16 percent this year * Trading volumes low ahead of year end * Palm oil to dip more to 3,116 ringgit - technicals (Updates prices) By Chew Yee Kiat SINGAPORE, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Malaysian crude palm oil futures inched up on Friday in thinly traded markets, lifted by positive U.S. economic data and concerns that heavy rain fall in second-largest producer Malaysia may cause supply disruption. U.S. data on Thursday pointed to positive trends for the world's biggest economy and helped allay concerns on slowing economic growth, giving global markets a much needed boost. Despite the rise, palm oil posted its first annual decline since 2008. It lost more than 16 percent this year, a performance that pales in comparison to the 42 percent gain in 2010. "We see light volumes on the last trading day. Traders are likely to stay on the sidelines and stay cautious before the full December export figures," said a dealer with a foreign commodities brokerage in Malaysia. Benchmark March palm oil futures on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed 0.6 percent higher at 3,175 ringgit ($1,000) per tonne. Traded volumes for palm oil futures stood at 12,308 lots of 25 tonnes, much thinner than the usual 25,000 lots as traders were unwilling to take postions ahead of the long weekend. Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao posted a bearish view, saying that palm oil will fall further to 3,116 ringgit per tonne, as indicated by a Fibonacci retracement analysis and a channel technique. The Malaysian Meteorological Department issued a warning that heavy rains may continue until Friday for key oil palm growing states of Johor, Pahang and Sabah, which account for almost 60 percent of national palm oil output. Production in Malaysia is in the seasonally low-yield phase and heavy rains that threaten to disrupt production may add pressure to tightening stocks. Traders expect December output to be 18 percent lower than a month ago. But export trends may provide relief to any tightness in stocks. Investors see December output falling by 15 percent, after cargo surveyors data showed a 11 percent decline for the Dec. 1-25 period. In related markets, Brent crude is set to end the year up nearly 14 percent from a year ago, supported by signs of an improving U.S. economy and Iran's threats to halt oil flow through a vital trade route. U.S. soyoil for January delivery gained 0.6 percent, in line with the stronger global markets while the most active Sept 2012 soyoil contract on China's Dalian commodity exchange also inched up 0.4 percent. "We can expect prices to perform stronger in the first and second quarter next year but macro factors such as China's policy and euro debt crisis are set to weigh on gains. Weather remains a key factor to watch," said Huang Zhi Qiang, an analyst with Shanghai-based Guotai Junan Futures. Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 1002 GMT Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume MY PALM OIL JAN2 3175 +55.00 3154 3175 107 MY PALM OIL FEB2 3175 +27.00 3159 3176 734 MY PALM OIL MAR2 3175 +20.00 3154 3179 7766 CHINA PALM OLEIN MAY2 8002 +40.00 7952 8016 49432 CHINA SOYOIL SEP2 8994 +32.00 8954 8998 175160 CBOT SOY OIL MAR2 51.80 +0.28 51.45 51.95 4483 NYMEX CRUDE FEB2 99.55 -0.10 99.25 100.16 8099 Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel

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