BERLIN (Reuters) - Truckers in the United States are deferring orders over fears of a global recession, Volkswagen's truck unit Traton said in a call with investors on Monday, according to an analyst note by Bernstein Research.

Traton, which in March had said it did not see a significant impact from U.S. tariffs on its imports from Mexico, now expected its North American market to shrink by 10%, even before the impact from tariffs or a possible recession, the note said.

The investor call was held before a closed period on company information before its first-quarter results on April 28.

Traton was not immediately available for comment.

The truckmaker also expected margins down "meaningfully" in Q1, driven by the volume decline, according to the note. Still, order momentum remained positive in Europe and production was being increased.