IMF chief a man of expensive tastes

Rumours of dangerous liaisons and sexual conquests had - at least before yesterday's shocking developments - little effect on Dominique Strauss-Kahn's chances of occupying the highest office in France.

But the presidential ambitions of the chief of the International Monetary Fund and the man French Socialists hoped would be the next occupant of the Elysee Palace were being dented by a new revelation - he likes, allegedly, to wear expensive suits.

Even before he had officially thrown his hat into the election ring - which he was expected to do within weeks - Strauss-Kahn was fighting off a furore over assertions his tastes were too luxurious to lay claim to the left.

Strauss-Kahn is suing a French newspaper that claimed staples of his lifestyle included luxury homes and sought-after works of art.

In its report, France Soir also said he wore handmade suits ordered by the half-dozen from United States President Barack Obama's tailor in Washington DC, a claim hotly denied.

The tailor, a 75-year-old Frenchman from Marseille, sells suits for between £4300 and £21,000 ($8855 to $43,250).

While the French are prepared to forgive their leaders' sexual peccadilloes - including lovers and secret families - they are less forgiving of displays of wealth. Nicolas Sarkozy was nicknamed the "Bling-bling President" after flashing his Rolex and holidaying on luxury yachts wearing aviator sunglasses.

Questions over Strauss-Kahn's wealth were raised two weeks ago after he was pictured climbing into a friend's £87,000 Porsche Panamera S outside his £3.5 million Paris home alongside his heiress wife.

The fallout from "Porsche-gate" seems to have proved more damaging to his popularity among voters than Strauss-Kahn's reputation as a "great seducer".

The impact of the New York allegations could be severe.

For months opinion polls have suggested that he is the only potential opposition candidate who might unseat Sarkozy in next year's election but, after the France Soir reports, Francois Hollande, the former Socialist party leader who is also seeking the party's nomination as presidential candidate, leaped to within a few points of him.

Hollande's ex-wife, Segolene Royal, who lost to Sarkozy in 2007, is another Socialist contender to be leader, with two other hopefuls.

In its report on Friday, the newspaper said that since Strauss-Kahn and his wealthy wife, Anne Sinclair, a former television presenter, had arrived in the US capital for his IMF job in 2007 they had lived a life of luxury. The couple was said to have bought a £2.5 million home in the upmarket Washington district of Georgetown.

Other reports revealed that Strauss-Kahn, who allegedly earns £22,000 net a month, also has an apartment in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, which he shares with his wife and which was bought for £2.2 million in 1990, another apartment in the expensive Place des Vosges in the 4th arrondissement bought in 2007 for £3.4 million, and a house in Marrakech.

That the Strauss-Kahns are wealthy has never been a secret. Sinclair is the granddaughter of Paul Rosenberg, a celebrated dealer in modern art, and has inherited part of his collection, which is said to include at least one Picasso. In many countries, such wealth would not necessarily be viewed as an impediment to a leftwing politician's career. In France, however, the flashiness has appalled some observers.

"Can one be leftwing and very rich?" asked Jean-Jacques Bourdin, a commentator on French radio station RMC. "If Sarkozy represented for many the 'bling-bling' right then Dominique Strauss-Kahn is, whether he likes it or not, a representative of the left 'vroom vroom'."

However, supporters were quick to jump to Strauss-Kahn's defence. Michele Sabban, vice-president of the Ile-de-France Socialists, said: "Dominique is staying true to himself. He admits his relationship with money and that's good. Besides, have you ever seen a poor president?"

Another supporter, local councillor Hussein Mokhtari, added: "So he has to eat sandwiches and drive a 2CV when he is head of the IMF and he is representing France?"

DOMINIQUE STRAUSS-KAHN

AGE: 62. Born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, on April 25, 1949.

EDUCATION: Degrees in law, business administration, political studies and statistics. PhD in economics from the University of Paris.

FAMILY: Wife, Anne Sinclair, and four children by a previous marriage.

CAREER: Managing director of the International Monetary Fund since 2007, where he won praise for his handling of the global financial crisis. Strauss-Kahn was an economics professor, corporate lawyer and legislator in France's National Assembly. He served as Finance Minister from 1997-99 and helped France prepare to abandon the franc for the euro. He sought the Socialist Party's nomination for the 2007 presidential elections and is a possible candidate in next year's presidential vote. He has been a visiting professor at Stanford University.

QUOTE: "While this incident constituted an error in judgment on my part, for which I take full responsibility, I firmly believe that I have not abused my position," Strauss-Kahn wrote in an email to IMF staff after an affair with a subordinate became public in 2008.

- OBSERVER / AP