Chevron Corp. said Friday it became the latest casualty of a weak oil market, announcing fourth quarter profits were down 30 percent year-on-year. “Our 2014 earnings were down from the previous year, largely due to the sharp decline in crude oil prices,” Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John Watson said in an announcement of fourth quarter earnings. Fourth quarter earnings of $3.5 billion represented a 30 percent decline year-on-year. Full year 2014 earnings were $19.2 billion, compared with $21.4 billion the previous year. Oil prices are off more than 15 percent since the start of the year and down more than half from June 2014 peaks. The price slump has forced many international energy companies, and those in secondary industries like steel, to cut their […]