Bob Dudley

British oil company BP said fourth-quarter earnings plunged 91 percent because of sharp declines in oil prices.

BP reported Tuesday that underlying replacement cost profit fell to $196 million from $2.2 billion in the same quarter a year earlier. The figures were reported using an oil industry accounting standard that takes into account fluctuations in the price of oil and excludes nonoperating items.

The company also set aside an additional $443 million in the quarter to cover costs related to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Total charges for the spill now total $55.5 billion.

Oil companies are slashing jobs and delaying investments as...