Sotheby's, the second-largest auction house, said it hired Guillaume Cerutti to head its business in France, where it has lagged behind No.1-ranked Christie's International for at least four years. Cerutti was formerly with the French Ministry of Economy and Finance, where he headed the Department of Consumer and Competitive Affairs, and was managing director of the Pompidou Center from 1996 to 2001, Sotheby's said in a statement yesterday. He replaces Philipp Wurttemberg, who took the title of Vice Chairman of Sotheby's Europe earlier this year, working on business development in the region. Paris is the fourth-largest auction market for Sotheby's and Christie's, having fallen behind Hong Kong in recent years. Yet it remains a storehouse of art for export to the top two markets, New York and London. Sotheby's, which bought French auctioneer Calmels Cohen in March, sold 38.4 million euros ($52.5 million) of art in France in the first six months, a 62 percent increase from a year earlier. Christie's, led by Francois Curiel in Europe, had 100.3 million euros of French auctions, and topped the French leagues for the fourth time in a row, though its growth slipped in the first half. Sotheby's French base is across the road from the Elysee presidential palace on Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore. Christie's is among the galleries on Avenue Matignon.