Soaring membership costs maketop clubs even more exclusive Companies are prepared to pay out to reward staff and pamper clients.

(From South China Morning Post)

Byline: Simon Parry

Toasting your success in the comfort of your own private members' club may seem the perfect way to celebrate a lucrative deal and draw your clients' attention to your elevated station in life.

But as the local economy rallies, those prestigious memberships are becoming increasingly expensive, with prices rising by up to 25 per cent in the past six months.

For the first time in years, demand is outstripping supply as companies scramble to snap up memberships to reward their most-valued executives and entertain their best customers.

"At the beginning of the year, a corporate …