Tesla chief executive Elon Musk said he had a "super bad feeling" about the economy and that the electric carmaker needed to cut staff by around 10%, according to an internal email seen by Reuters.

The email, titled "pause all hiring worldwide," was sent to Tesla executives on Thursday.

Tesla was not immediately available for comments.

Musk earlier this week asked Tesla employees to return to the office or leave the company.

"Everyone at Tesla is required to spend a minimum of 40 hours in the office per week," Musk wrote in another email sent to employees on Tuesday night.

"If you don't show up, we will assume you have resigned."