I remembered this... in that time, April 2011 to April 2013, the $AUD traded above parity to the $US [hit a high @ around US$1.10 for AUD$1.... ranged between 96 cents to $1.10 over a 2 year period]. Fuel costs were mitigated by the rise in the AUD, imports became cheaper [remember the bargains in JB HiFi?] but our exports would have suffered. That is probably the better explanation rather than just the oil price.