Members of the South Carolina Mastermind Group had their first meeting in Charleston since the group’s formation. Members from across the state heard from Micah Mallace, Director of Regional Sales with the South Carolina Ports Authority. Fundamentally, Micah shared that their industry involves long cycles and they will not see any material impacts due to the tariffs. The southeastern United States continues to grow at rates three times that of GDP, with no signs of slowing. The automotive and advanced manufacturing industries have been driving most of the growth during the last decade, but the most recent growth has come from plastics (specifically pellets or ‘nurdles’). It is not a flashy business, but with the low cost to manufacture, the US has found itself on par with Saudi Arabia in terms of costs.