South Carolina

South Carolina has reinvented itself as a manufacturing powerhouse for foreign automakers — and that very success makes it uniquely vulnerable to tariffs. BMW's Spartanburg plant is the company's largest factory worldwide, producing 411,000 X-model SUVs annually, with 70% exported. The 25% auto tariff on imported parts raises BMW's per-vehicle costs while retaliatory tariffs from China and the EU threaten the export market that justifies the plant's existence. Volvo's Berkeley County plant and Mercedes-Benz Vans' North Charleston facility add to the auto exposure. Michelin's North American headquarters in Greenville and Bridgestone's massive tire plants face tariffs on imported natural rubber (primarily from Southeast Asia) that raise costs on every tire produced. Boeing's North Charleston campus assembles 787 Dreamliners — one of America's top single export products — using a global supply chain where components from Japan, Italy, and the UK are now subject to tariffs. The Port of Charleston, the state's economic engine, handles $80B in annual trade that tariffs make more expensive. South Carolina's cotton and peach industries face retaliatory targeting.