Today's vote for the 44th US president will transform the world. But what impact will it have on markets and the economy?

As The Times and The National point out, the world is in the grip of Obamamania. Not that it would have any impact. Four years ago, the rest of world was backing John Kerry. But at the same time, it suggests that an Obama victory might well have a significant impact on markets outside the US.

From London, the Telegraph reports that a win for Obama would be seen as less positive for the market. The paper reports that a survey by UBS of investors and analysts at the start of October showed that 55% of investors believed a victory by McCain would be better for profit growth and that 54% thought shares would trade down in November and December if Obama won. On the other hand, analysis by the San Francisco Chronicle shows that the the Standard & Poor's 500 index actually does better when a Democrat is in the White House.

Assuming Obama wins, and all the prediction markets and polls are pointing to that, he will be inheriting enormous problems and there is no quick fix. If the Democrats have increased numbers in Washington, we can assume there will be an aggressive fiscal package, perhaps even an economic summit designed to inject confidence back into the economy. The fiscal package might well be bigger than anything that's been doled out to date.

Bloomberg reports that economists Martin Feldstein and Nouriel Roubini say the economic stimulus package will may have be enormous, starting at about double the 2007 federal budget deficit of $161.5 billion.

Watch this space.