On Thursday's night session, CBOT soybean futures initially rose then fell, with the benchmark November contract settling at 1,236 cents/bushel. The Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour results showed that pod counts in key production state Illinois were above the three-year average, while Iowa's western region was near average levels, raising market concerns over U.S. soybean production. Meanwhile, Thursday's USDA data showed private exporters sold 150,000 tonnes of soybeans to unknown destinations, with strong demand providing some support to prices. In the near term, CBOT soybeans are expected to trade in a high-level range-bound pattern.