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French President Francois Hollande said on Tuesday a victory by U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump could make politics more conservative around the world and said the real estate magnate made people 'feel nauseous'.

A Trump victory in November could also affect France's presidential election in the spring of 2017, said Hollande, who has not yet announced if he will seek re-election.

'If the Americans choose Trump, that will have consequences, because an American election is a world election,' the Socialist leader told journalists.

The intervention by a world leader over the Capt Khan row  came as President Barack Obama on Tuesday called Trump 'unfit' to become president.

'Yes. I think the Republican nominee is unfit to serve as president,' Obama said at a news conference, 'I said so last week and he keeps on proving it.' 

Trump hit back claiming Obama, supported by Hillary Clinton in her time as Secretary of State, had 'destabilized the Middle East, handed Iraq, Libya and Syria to ISIS, and allowed our personnel to be slaughtered at Benghazi.'

'It could lead to a very strong turn to the right in the world, or to a correction ... the American campaign shows issues that will be reflected in the French campaign,' said Hollande.

The Socialist will face strong competition from far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen if he chooses to run again for the French presidency.

'A certain number of excesses have ended up making people feel nauseous - even in the United States - especially, as Donald Trump did, when criticizes the memory of a soldier,' he said.

Trump has been caught up in a row after the family of Captain Humayun Khan, killed in action in Iraq, spoke against him, with the officer's father, Khizr, speaking at the Democratic National Convention and accusing Trump of ignoring the constitution.

Trump questioned the silence at the event of the dead man's mother, Ghazala, prompting her to cry in a television interview and her husband to accuse Trump having a 'dark soul'.

Hollande said he was hearing 'hurtful, humiliating comments' during the election campaign. Speaking about politicians in general, he said 'they should be respected when they are respectable'.