Total Earnings Fall 36% as Oil Prices Decline

PARIS -- French oil giant Total(TOT Quote) said Wednesday net profit fell 36% in the first quarter as oil prices fell sharply amid the global economic downturn.

Paris-based Total, France's largest company by market capitalization, said net profit dropped to 2.29 billion euros ($2.98 billion) in the January to March period, from 3.6 billion euros a year earlier.

In a statement, Total CEO Christophe de Margerie highlighted that despite "an environment dominated by global recession," the decline in Total's replacement cost profit measured in dollars -- to $2.8 billion from $4.9 billion a year earlier -- was "the most limited decrease among the majors."

Replacement cost profit -- a key measure for oil companies -- is viewed by many analysts as the best measure of an oil company's underlying performance because it excludes changes in the value of crude inventories, measuring the amount it would cost to replace assets at current prices. ...