RIYADH, 15 March 2008 — Sheikh Saud Al-Shuraim, imam of the Grand Mosque in Makkah and a member of the teaching staff at Umm Al-Qura University, has called for the establishment of an Islamic common market.
Delivering his Juma sermon at the Grand Mosque yesterday, the imam said the proposed market should follow the teachings of the Shariah, keeping away from interest-based financial dealings.
Many international financial organizations have started adopting Islamic financing systems after the latter proved successful in terms of achieving substantial profits, Al-Shuraim said, adding that the Qur’an and Sunnah have explained the basic principles for financial transactions.
Ezzuddin Khoja, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of the Islamic Financial Banks, said Islamic banks in Arab and Muslim countries alone now handle more than $250 billion.
Islamic bank deposits in the Gulf rose by 29 percent to $58 billion in 2005 compared to the previous year. Islamic finances worldwide are estimated at about $450 billion, he explained.
Islamic and traditional banks apply different rules.
The Islamic banking system does not depend on loans and offers a variety of products such as murabaha, mudaraba, musharaka, ijara and istisna based on profit and loss sharing.
The Islamic banking system began in Saudi Arabia and Prince Muhammad Al-Faisal and Saleh Al-Kamil have played a pioneering role in promoting it, Khoja said.
