Its sales in Europe rose 1.8 percent in February from a year ago on the sale of 93,300 vehicles, U. S. automaker Ford Motor Co. has said.

The Detroit Free Press reported Monday that the Dearborn, Mich., automaker maintained its share of the market, although sales rose 2.9 for the industry as a whole in February, said Ingvar Sviggum, Ford vice president of Europe sales and marketing.

Sviggum further said, "Our market share was pretty stable in Europe despite aggressive discounting by some of our competitors."

Ford would not cut prices just to establish market share, Sviggum added further.

"We will not engage in actions that jeopardize the sustainability of our business."

According to the Ford officials, it was the ninth consecutive month sales have increased in the European market. (With Inputs from Agencies)