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South Carolina is 5th Best State for Business 2014

Picture of J.P. Donlon

J.P. Donlon

By improving South Carolina’s business-friendly climate and developing the skills of the workforce, companies like Boeing, BMW, Bridgestone, Continental and Michelin have made large investments or greatly expanded their presence in South Carolina, Gov. Nikki Hawley told Chief Executive magazine in February (in response to last year’s ranking). “These investments have helped advance our state’s manufacturing renaissance, and generated interest from companies around the globe.”

Previous State: North Carolina Next State: Indiana

No. 5 South Carolina

Taxations & Regulations

Workforce Quality

Living Environment

Key Metrics
State GDP 

  • % Growth ’12-’13: 1.2
  • % Growth ’11-’12 v. Nat’l Avg. (2.5%): 0.2

Unemployment

  • Unemployment Rate Dec. 2013 %: 6.6
  • Comparison with Nat’l Rate (6.70%): -0.1

Domestic Migration

  • Domestic Net Migration 2013: 29,324
  • Rank: 5

State Government

  • State Debt per Capita Fiscal Year ’13 ($): 3,271
  • State & Local Gov’t Employees per 10k Residents: 577.2

State-Local Tax Burden

  • Rate (%): 8.4%
  • Compared to Nat’l Avg. (9.9%): -1.49%
Key Companies
  • Sonoco Products
  • AVX Corporation
  • SCANA Corp.
  • ScanSource
Development Trend Indicator: Neutral
Manages to boost highway-infrastructure spending without penalizing business.
CEO Comments
“South Carolina and Texas seem to be very pro-business, a good environment to start or bring a business to.” 

“South Carolina has attracted very heavy foreign investment (such as BMW and Michelin) and a rapidly growing aerospace sector (such as Boeing and 200+ other companies in aviation.”

Based on CEO Survey by ChiefExecutive.net

Sources:
Bureau of Economic Analysis
Bureau of Labor Statistics
NewGeography.com
The Tax Foundation


Picture of J.P. Donlon

J.P. Donlon

J.P. Donlon is Editor Emeritus of Chief Executive magazine.
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