Reuters World News - Hyundai, Venezuela, labor data and NFL

Episode Date: September 6, 2025

A massive immigration raid at Hyundai’s battery plant in Georgia has halted operations and sparked diplomatic tension with South Korea. The U.S. has sent stealth fighter jets to the Caribbean, raising pressure on Venezuela. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is expected to link Tylenol use in pregnancy to autism, sending shares of its maker, Kenvue, tumbling. Investors expect the Fed to start cutting rates soon after weak jobs data. And the NFL is finally back, kicking off a packed sports weekend.  Recommended Listen: On Assignment Sign up for the Reuters Econ World newsletter ⁠here⁠. Listen to the Reuters Econ World podcast ⁠here⁠. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, hundreds are arrested as an immigration raid halts a Hyundai battery plant in Georgia. The US sends stealth jets to the Caribbean as tensions rise with Venezuela. Trump says he's backing RFK Jr despite the health secretary's grilling from both parties. Investors look for more aggressive US rate cuts after weak jobs data. And the NFL is back, kicking off a pack global calendar of sports. It's Saturday, September 6th. This is Reuters World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines in 10 minutes, seven days a week.

I'm Tara Oaks in Liverpool. I would say that they were illegal aliens and ICE was just doing its job. US President Donald Trump, after an immigration raid on Hyundai's battery plant in Georgia, saw hundreds of workers detained. Homeland Security says it's their largest single-site operation ever, and that most of those detained are South Koreans, who were barred from working in the U.S. after crossing the border illegally or overstaying their visas. The raid stopped work on a plant that's part of Hyundai's $12 billion U.S. investment

and is straining ties with Seoul. South Korean foreign ministry spokesman, Lijai Weng condemning the raid, warning U.S. enforcement must not violate the rights of its citizens or investors. Hayundai says none of the workers were directly employed by the company. The U.S. is sending 10 stealth fighter jets to the Caribbean, ramping up military pressure on Venezuela. The move follows a deadly strike on a Venezuelan boat the U.S. claims was carrying drugs. CNN says President Trump is weighing options for further stress. strikes, including potentially attacking suspected drug cartels inside the country.

The United States of America, should abandon a plan of a regime violent in Venezuela. Venezuela's president, Nicola Maduro, has warned Washington to abandon any plans of regime change and to respect the country's sovereignty. Trump says he's not pushing for regime change in Venezuela, but he's not backing down on targeting boats, he claims, are carrying drugs. And when I see boats coming in, like loaded up the other day with all sorts of drugs, probably fentanyl mostly, but all sorts of drugs, and we're going to take them out.

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to announce that Tylenol use during pregnancy is potentially linked to autism. That's according to a Wall Street Journal report citing people familiar with the matter. Shares in Tylenol maker can view fair. 14% on the news, with the company stating it believes there's no causal link between taking the popular over-the-counter pain medication during pregnancy and autism. The Department of Health and Human Services says claims about the report's contents are speculation until it's officially released. Now Kennedy got a grilling from both parties in Congress this week, but President Trump says he's standing by Kennedy.

If you look at what's going on in the world with health and look at this country also with regard to health, I like the fact that he's different. White House reporter Jeff Mason says the two may not share all the same views, but they are still close. The president and RFK Jr. speak regularly, according to a White House official I spoke to for this story. I can't say how often they talk specifically about vaccines,

but the president said on Friday in the Oval Office, when asked about the moves in Florida. that you have to be careful about saying people don't need to be vaccinated. But as the White House official told me, President Trump trusts Bobby Kennedy's judgment. And I think it's important to see how much leeway the president is giving Secretary Kennedy. He's not putting any guardrails around the secretary as he implements this vision for the public health system and for vaccines generally. I did speak to one analysts who made a point of saying President Trump may be supportive, but he also has a skill for distancing himself from people if they do something to embarrass him.

This weekend, the energy in American sports is electric. The NFL is back, and for fans, it feels like the weight has been forever. But it's not just football lighting up the calendar, as it's gearing up to be a truly global weekend of sport. The global sports editor, Ocean Shine, brings you inside track, your essential guide to the weekend in sport and talks us through some of the big moments. It's a big global weekend of sport, but there is a certain sort of freeze on it about America, primarily because it's the return of the NFL. It seems to have been a long offseason, and we've now got 272 regular season games stretching out ahead of us. People love the NFL, and especially having been starved of it since Super Bowl, it's going to be the number one ticket in town.

You've got Aaron Rogers, one of the greats. He's facing the Jets, having left there after just two pretty unsatisfactory seasons in New York, didn't go well for him. And he's facing Justin Fields, who's now tasked with reviving Jets greatness. Fields was in Pittsburgh last year, so you've got a really interesting sort of clash there. And just a quick shout out for those like me, who's interest in the NFL, is largely Taylor Swift related. We're still not 100% sure if Taylor Swift is going to show up at the NFL, but she's been a pretty, regular Chiefs fan, obviously just got engaged. Fiancee will be playing in a sport that does ceremony,

pizzazz, showbiz better than any other sport. That alone would make it a super weekend in the States, but of course we've got the US Open final weekend. And that's shaping up to be a real humdinger. You've got Amanda Aminisova against Anya Sabolenko in the women's final. And Anamisova, of course, is born in New Jersey just down the road from Flushing Meadow. She had a terrible Wimbled and lost Six Love, Six Love in the final, which was just horrific for her.

So this is a classic redemption tale, which I'm sure the whole of New York and the whole of the US is going to be behind her. They've brought out cocktail, especially for the US Amy. It's called a honey deuce cocktail, which is vodka, raspberry, little honey balls, shaped like tennis balls. Donald Trump himself is going to show up at the final in New York. So that's going to bring its own special spice to the occasion.

Here's what's going on beyond America. I'm looking at the Women's Rugby World Cup. We've got South Africa playing France, which is going to be a real test to see exactly, how far they've come. They've already beaten a top 10 country for the first time ever. They've reached their first ever World Cup quarter final. And that's really galvanized a country where apartheid is still casting a shadow. But the South African women's team is drawn from all over the country and the entire nation's got behind them. So that would be a really feel-good story and

fascinating to see how they've come on the pitch. The Fed is very likely to start cutting interest rates in a couple of weeks and keep cutting them through the end of the year to keep the labor market from getting any worse than what it is now. Our economics reporter Anne Sophia there after news that the US jobs market is hitting stall speed. August data shows the unemployment rate has jumped to 4.3%, the highest in almost four years. The Labor Department says the economy actually lost jobs in June for the first time since 2020, and says all that's likely to push the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates this month.

You can't ignore the ongoing political pressure on the Fed from Trump. He's been demanding lower rate. It looks like he's about to get them. They won't answer his desire to have a very large rate cut. And he's trying to put more control on the Fed. He has tried to fire one of the Fed governors, which is a really unprecedented move.

That is currently an, an issue for the courts to decide. And he is also nominating someone who very much holds his view to fill an open seat on the board. He's hoping to get him in there by September so he can vote on this next policy meeting. So there's a lot of going on there that is sort of way beyond what's going on in the actual labor market that could affect and probably will affect what the Fed does. Today, our recommendation to you is to listen to our latest episode on of On Assignment Podcast. This week's is called Where's the Beef?

I'm standing outside of Mr. Beef. It's a restaurant in Chicago's River North neighborhood. Now, it's a pretty, unassuming, narrow brick building, but you might know it as the location and inspiration for the hit TV series, The Bear. We talk to our reporters who've been across North America talking to cattlemen and experts to understand what's going on in the cattle industry. We'll travel to Chiapas, Mexico, to meet ranchers who are combating screw worm, an insect that's creeping northward, and visit the plains of Texas as ranchers there brace for the pest that's threatening to upend the cattle industry here in the U.S.

We'll put a link in the description and you can listen to on assignment wherever you get your podcasts. For more on any of the stories from today, check out Reuters.com or the Reuters app. to follow us on your favorite podcast player. And if you're listening on a smart speaker, just ask for the latest news from Reuters seven days a week. We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show.