Chinese billionaires with a taste for gambling will soon have a regal pied-à-terre to call their own after the official groundbreaking in Macau for the Louis XIII boutique casino and hotel.

In partnership with LAB Concept, May will see the launch of the first Greater China Topshop flagship in Hong Kong.

According to a property consulting firm's recent findings, Hong Kong's luxury apartment rents are expected to rise this year, but at a lower rate than previously predicted.

Originally announced in 2011, the China expansion efforts of Hong Kong-based luxury department store Lane Crawford are set to gain pace with the opening of two new stores in Shanghai and Chengdu by the end of this year.

Having already snapped up distressed wineries in France and Chile, Chinese state-owned giant COFCO is now setting its eyes even further afield, on wineries in the US as well as Australia's Barossa Valley.