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April 22- Halliburton Co said on Monday that it was in court-facilitated talks to settle private claims against it in the trial to determine blame for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico spill at a BP well where it performed work.

*Halliburton rallies in premarket after results. NEW YORK, April 22- U.S. stock index futures were higher on Monday, rebounding from stocks' worst week in 2013, as the latest quarterly earnings included major companies ranging from Caterpillar Inc to Halliburton Co to Texas Instruments Inc..

CHICAGO, April 22- Caterpillar Inc cut its full-year outlook for 2013 on Monday to reflect a drop in demand for heavy equipment from its mining customers.

TAIPEI, April 22- Orders for Taiwan's exports unexpectedly shrank 6.6 percent in March from a year earlier, contracting for the second straight month, pointing to faltering global demand for hi-tech products and signalling that Asia's trade-reliant economies may be losing further momentum.

*Gold to test resistance at $1,424- technicals. *Strong buying seen in Asia, ETF holdings drop. LONDON/ SINGAPORE, April 22- Gold rose on Monday, supported by strong physical buying after its fall last week to the weakest price in two years, but sentiment was shaky as bullion holdings in exchange-traded funds were trimmed to the lowest in three years.

*Gold to test resistance at $1,424- technicals. SINGAPORE, April 22- Gold jumped more than 2 percent on Monday after a rebound above $1,400 ignited technical buying, but sentiment was shaky as steady outflows from exchange-traded funds trimmed their bullion holdings to the lowest in three years.

*Raised foreign bond holdings by Y200 bln in year to March 2013. TOKYO, April 19- Taiyo Life Insurance, Japan's sixth-largest life insurer, plans to increase its foreign bond holdings and may cut investment in domestic bonds in the year to March, the company's director in charge of investment planning, Chikahiro Tsuboi, said on Friday.

LAUNCESTON, Australia, April 22- The Chinese have launched another attempt to wrest some control of the global iron ore market from the dominant big three miners, but it's likely this latest salvo will fall short of the target.

*ABB to acquire Power-One for $6.35 per share in cash. ZURICH, April 22- Automation technology group ABB is to buy renewable energy firm Power-One Inc for around $1 billion to step up its presence in the growing solar inverters market.

*G20 accepts Japan reflation policies. *MSCI Asia ex- Japan inches higher. TOKYO, April 22- Japanese shares powered to nearly 5- year highs and determined sellers just failed to breach the symbolic 100 yen/ dollar level on Monday, even though the Bank of Japan's bold reflationary plans were endorsed by the Group of 20 gatherings in Washington.

HONG KONG, April 22- China shares fell from a one-month high on Monday and Hong Kong markets were sluggish, with Chinese insurers sliding on fears that payouts for Saturday's earthquake in Sichuan could hit profit margins.

The test's location at Three Mile Island outside Harrisburg, Pennsylvania- the site of the worst commercial nuclear accident in U.S. history- had no special significance, according to state and federal officials.

DUBAI, April 21- The new chief executive of Emirates NBD will have to marry competing desires for international expansion and greater local influence in its management, after Dubai's largest bank announced the departure of current head Rick Pudner on Sunday.

*Corn farmers nervous due to soggy soil. NEW DELHI, April 22- Chicago corn futures fell on Monday after settling up more than 1 percent in the previous session after some reports of an improvement in weather conditions but concerns remain about a slowdown in planting due to recent heavy rains.

*Gold to test resistance at $1,424- technicals. SINGAPORE, April 22- Gold jumped more than 1 percent on Monday after a rebound above $1,400 ignited technical buying, but sentiment was shaky as steady outflows from exchange-traded funds trimmed holdings to their lowest in three years.

HONG KONG/SHANGHAI, April 19- Asia's central banks could dip their toes into Chinese bonds in coming months, taking advantage of a relaxation of investment quotas and easier access to the onshore market as Beijing steps up efforts to internationalise the yuan, bankers said.

*Dollar/yen reaches 99.90 yen in thin early Asia trade. SYDNEY, April 22- The yen started the new week under pressure, with the dollar just a whisker away from the elusive 100 level, after the Group of 20 countries stopped short of criticising Japan's reflationary policies that have significantly weakened its currency.

SHANGHAI, April 18- Three Chinese financial industry executives have been arrested for allegedly using complex bond trading practices to skim client profits for personal gain, state media reported this week.