It is remarkable to think that the imminent prospect of petrol prices falling to $1.50 a litre will bring a sigh of collective relief from Australian families.
Such a reaction to such a price as little as 18 months ago would have seemed laughable.
Battered by high interest rates and higher prices for just about everything from food to health care, all of us will welcome the little ray of financial sunshine provided by relatively cheaper petrol over the coming few weeks.
The reason for the hip pocket relief can be found in Australia's benchmark price - the Singapore unleaded petrol price - which has fallen $US15 a barrel in the past week.
That should translate into a likely fall of around 10 to 13 cents a litre.
And that is good news for the average Australian household which is forking out a record $228.30 a month in petrol, up $58 in the past 10 months.
Such high oil prices were never sustainable against a global backdrop of soaring food prices and slowing growth.
More to the point, the welcome price fall is a timely reminder of just how vulnerable we all are to the fluctuations of a global economy and the inevitability of demand for oil outstripping supply.
We should enjoy the relief while it lasts.
As motorists have learned to their collective cost, what goes down usually goes up again.