autocomplete not recognizing country

i have a few test listings from two different countries

when i type in the country of one of the listings, whether i enter the country name in the search box or the Near box (next to the search field), none of the listings are found

in other words, it seems that the autocomplete location field isn’t triggering

i’ve tried all kinds of combinations of advanced search, autocomplete, multilocation, map and other settings, but i can’t get the autocomplete stuff to work for the Near box in the search form, or to find the country or city location if entered in the search box

credentials in private post

if anyone might have any ideas, many thanks