SAN FRANCISCO — Yahoo showed more signs of progress during the fourth quarter as it took advantage of higher ad prices and rising earnings from its international investments to deliver numbers that exceeded analyst forecasts.

Overall, Yahoo’s fourth-quarter earnings dipped 8 percent from the previous year to $272 million, or 23 cents per share, from $296 million, or 24 cents per share. The earnings would have been higher than the previous year, if not for a charge to close its South Korea operations and other one-time accounting items.