(Reuters) - Volkswagen told investors on Wednesday that its target of a 6% margin on the VW passenger car brand was now more realistic in the "medium term", according to a note by Bernstein Research, after the German carmaker previously aimed to hit a 6.5% margin by 2026.

The investor call was held before a closed period on company information ahead of annual results scheduled for March 11.

Volkswagen could not immediately be reached for comment after business hours.

Addressing a cost-cutting deal struck with unions last month that included a promise to shrink the workforce by 35,000 by 2030 without forced redundancies, executives told investors that they aimed for 24,000 of the jobs reduction to be achieved by natural attrition and early retirement, Bernstein said.

The carmaker's call was "slightly more upbeat" than that held by Porsche the previous evening, analysts said, where executives warned that 2025 would be a challenging year.

Volkswagen said its order book in western Europe was slightly larger than before the pandemic at around 850,000 units, the Bernstein note said.

It expected to pay around 1.5 billion euros ($1.56 billion) for non-compliance with EU emissions targets, according to the note.

($1 = 0.9608 euros)