Maybe it's people starting to realize that an AR is worthless if you can't find ammo?
I think this is dead spot on.
I almost bought a couple of 9mm handguns at my LGS this week but no 9mm ammo on the shelf - and if you've followed me for any time here, you know I don't have any 9mm so never had any need to keep any ammo around.
While no 5.56 there is .223 available but it is relatively expensive.
The only AR variants I've seen are .22 caliber varieties. No AKs seen since December.
Now, that said, I absolutely plan to expand my firearms collection to include 9mm this year and I will also snatch up the first AK I see.