Trump Tariffs a Burden for Upstate Business

Paul Hyde/S.C. Daily Gazette

When President Trump’s top trade adviser attacked BMW in Greer, the local reaction was swift and fierce.

“He’s divorced from reality,” said Spartanburg County Council Vice Chair David Britt, speaking of that top official, Peter Navarro. “He has a twisted view of the United States. He lives in the ‘70s.”

Ouch. But there’s more: “This is why you don’t let people and passengers on a plane fly it,” Britt added.

In other words, Britt was inviting Navarro, architect of Trump’s controversial tariff policies, to kindly butt out of the Upstate’s business.

In ruby red South Carolina, that’s some tough talk directed at Trump’s influential trade adviser.

What prompted the strong reaction from Britt and Upstate business leaders was Navarro blasting BWM and Mercedes for importing car parts to make finished vehicles in South Carolina.

“This business model where BMW and Mercedes come into Spartanburg, South Carolina, and have us assemble German engines and Austrian transmissions — that doesn’t work for America. It’s bad for our economics. It’s bad for our national security,” Navarro said.

Navarro was referring to BMW’s sprawling manufacturing facility known as Plant Spartanburg. But he got the Mercedes plant location wrong. It’s near Charleston, not Spartanburg.

Navarro believes Trump’s tariffs will force auto companies to manufacture all car parts, “from bolt to body,” here in the U.S.

“Peter Navarro is out of touch,” Britt said. “He needs to visit Plant Spartanburg with BMW if he really wants to see what’s going on. My blood boils when this sort of thing happens.”

Tariffs raise costs

The strong reaction by Britt and Upstate business leaders was really not surprising.

The not-so-secret reality of the Upstate economy is that it’s driven by massive foreign investment and strong international imports and exports.

The globalization goose lays the golden eggs. Or call it a Carolina wren.

The Upstate economy is internationally connected. Tariffs raise costs, obstructing the smooth and successful operation of South Carolina’s top manufacturers. Those higher costs are passed on to the American consumer in the form of higher prices.

In the Lowcountry, meanwhile, David Wren reports in the SC Daily Gazette that Volvo Cars temporarily halted production at its Ridgefield plant because of a parts shortage caused at least in part by Trump’s fluctuating tariffs.

Trump, it seems, is a president who likes walls, whether on the southern border or in the form of trade barriers like tariffs.

The average U.S. tariff rate is 17.8%, more than seven times the 2.5% Trump inherited, the Financial Times recently reported.

But the Upstate’s iconic symbol is not a wall but a bridge. Aptly named “Liberty Bridge,” the expansive footbridge towers over the beautiful Reedy River Falls near downtown Greenville.

The modern miracle of Greenville — and if you’ve been around at least three decades or so, you know what a miracle it is — is built on trade freedom, not on trade war.

Washington speaks of economic adversaries. The Upstate seeks out economic partners.

With classic Southern hospitality, the Upstate has welcomed hundreds of international businesses such as Germany’s BMW (more than 11,000 workers), France’s Michelin (more than 9,000 workers), Sweden’s Eloctrolux, Switzerland’s Nestle, Japan’s Fujifilm, and Germany’s ZF, Bosch, Adidas, and Draexlmaier, just to name a few.

The Greenville Area Development Corporation points out that South Carolina as a whole frequently ranks as the No. 1 state for attracting jobs through foreign direct investment per capita.

More than 250 international firms from 28 countries have a major presence in the Upstate. (Anderson County has 50 international companies representing 18 countries).

“We welcome this melting pot of residents and visitors with open arms,” the Greenville development corporation says.

‘Good for America’

In a joint statement, the Greenville Chamber of Commerce and OneSpartanburg rose to the defense of BMW, drawing attention to the Upstate’s diversified and globalized economy: “BMW Group’s Plant Spartanburg drove Upstate South Carolina’s transformation from a declining textile economy to a thriving center of advanced manufacturing.”

BMW packs an economic wallop, employing more than 11,000 workers and providing a $26.7-billion impact for South Carolina.

The plant is the largest exporter of vehicles by value in the U.S., shipping 225,000 vehicles worth more than $10 billion in 2024, Upstate business leaders said.

BMW has produced 5 million vehicles in Greer since the plant opened in 1994.

U.S. Rep. William Timmons, who represents Greenville and Spartanburg counties in Congress, and Gov. Henry McMaster also added their support for BMW’s policies.

“I can assure you that BMW is good for South Carolina and America,” Timmons said.

The SC Daily Gazette’s Jessica Holdman provided a detailed and in-depth report on how Trump’s tariffs could cause serious harm to South Carolina’s thriving auto industry.

Tariffs raise prices on imported car parts and potentially undermine car exports from South Carolina.

Trump has scaled back some of his disruptive auto tariffs, but not permanently.

Globalization doesn’t deserve all the credit for the Upstate’s bustling and ever-growing economy, but international investment and free trade have been an unambiguous godsend for the region and the entire state.

Upstate businesses will weather the storm, knowing that the nation eventually will return to its free-trade foundation.

After all, the Upstate’s defining symbol is a bridge, not a wall.

Paul Hyde is a longtime journalist and teacher in the Upstate. He worked 18 years for the Greenville News as a columnist, editorial writer, education reporter and arts writer. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Clemson and Harvard universities. He has written for the Houston Chronicle, Dallas Morning News and USA Today, among other publications. He currently is a regular contributor to the Greenville Journal, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Classical Voice North America.

The South Carolina Daily Gazette is a nonprofit news site providing nonpartisan reporting and thoughtful commentary. We strive to shine a light on state government and how political decisions affect people across the Palmetto State.