Pure and simple, the reason that there's such a problem to acquire a SW auto radio in the US market is because there's no incentive to produce or market one. And not only that, unless your interest is in religious domestic SW stations how many English language broadcasts are beamed to North America? There are just a handful: Radio Romania, China, India, Havana, just a small amount which to me doesn't make it worth the effort. As a matter of fact the only people who push the SWL pastime these days are the guys who believe that their boat anchors should still command some elite price point when they try to sell them. There's very little of interest anymore that we can hear in NA. There would naturally be a larger market for SW radios in South America, Asia, and Africa. Some of my observations bear this out when I go to hamfests; I see many fully functional Hallicrafters, Hammarlunds, Nationals, etc. going for very low prices and no one buys them. Collectors who pile this crap up to the ceiling just to look at them have some good, cheap pickings these days.