A Japanese company called AESC has temporarily stopped building its $1.6 billion factory in South Carolina. This factory was going to make batteries for electric BMW cars, but AESC said they stopped because of "policy and market uncertainty." South Carolina's Governor Henry McMaster thinks this pause is happening because of possible changes to federal tax breaks for electric car buyers, benefits for EV businesses, and unclear import taxes if Donald Trump becomes president again. Even though they paused, AESC has promised to hire 1,600 workers and invest $1.6 billion, and they have already invested $1 billion in the Florence factory. At the same time, South Carolina continues to put a lot of money into electric vehicles. For example, Scout Motors plans to invest $2 billion in a new factory to make electric SUVs by 2027. A bigger worry is how Trump's idea of high import taxes could affect South Carolina's relationships with foreign companies like BMW, Michelin, and Samsung.