The positive spillover effects of expenditures relating to the annual Haj and Umrah are exceptional. The Haj reaches its climax this week with several million pilgrims converging on Makkah.
The Umrah or lesser Haj can take place anytime but is popular in the fasting month of Ramadan. A recent report by Ernst & Young tracing hotel occupancy in the Middle East confirmed that revenue levels for hotels in Makkah and Madinah were up by 55 per cent and 52 per cent in August, respectively………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Government announced it planned to continue working to establish Bermuda as a centre for Shariah-complaint finance, and said efforts are paying off. Islamic finance has expanded rapidly over the past few years and global assets are estimated to soon be in the trillions.
Business Bermuda members have over the last few years been marketing Bermuda as a jurisdiction that can handle and manage Shariah-compliant funds, re/insurance and other types of financial/investment products. Shariah law frowns on alcohol, tobacco and gambling-related businesses and bans interest………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Libya’s civil war devastated its economy and banking system. But the revolution has created conditions for strong growth of an industry which made little headway under former Gaddafi: Islamic finance.
Announcing the country’s liberation to a cheering crowd in Benghazi last week, the head of the new government made few concrete pledges of economic policy. But one of them was to promote Islamic finance, which prohibits the lending of money for interest and other practices violating religious principles………………………………………..Full Article: Source

EIIB, one of five FSA approved banks in the UK, significantly downsizing operations, following the heels of Islamic Bank of Britain (IBB) parental rescue capital injection. Gulf Finance House — once high flying Islamic investment bank (or was it a real estate bank) from Bahrain — ongoing restructuring, recapitalisation and reorganisation. Should they be returning all the awards?
The appointment of Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz for another term as governor of Bank Negara Malaysia, the launch of IILM (International Islamic Liquidity Management Corp) at GIFF (Global Islamic Finance Forum) in October 2010 and a smooth handover of IFSB (Islamic Financial Services Board) from Rifaat Abdul Karim to Jaseem Ahmad as secretary general………………………………………..Full Article: Source

This disillusionment and hostility has in turn provided an excellent opportunity for Islamic banks to provide an apparent alternative to the current banking system. Particularly in Pakistan, Islamic banks have been aggressively marketing their products in an attempt to expand their client base.
According to the SBP, only ten per cent of Pakistan’s population use banking services, but with a population of over 180 million people, that adds up to quite a few customers………………………………………..Full Article: Source

No policy statement by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has generated so much controversy like the proposed Islamic banking. Since January this year when the apex bank issued the first guidelines on the banking model, the draft framework has continued to receive knocks from many quarters.
Many critics have been lampooning the CBN for what they call its assumption that Islamic banking is synonymous with the profit-and-loss sharing banking model and foisting an Islamic banking practice on a secular country………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Islamic bonds halted a three-week rally as increased volatility in global markets undermined plans by Indonesia to sell sukuk.
“Given this volatility, you don’t know when you’ll get the deal done,” Zeid Ayer, chief investment officer at Kuala Lumpur-based CIMB-Principal Islamic Management Bhd, who helps oversee US$700 million (RM2.18 billion) of assets, said. “I am not selling or buying because sukuk had a good run recently………………………………………..Full Article: Source

The Islamic Fashion Festival, (IFF) is back in Kuala Lumpur this month after a series of shows abroad. This is the 19th IFF event since 2006, and it takes its cue from the orient with the theme, Oriental Charm. The media were given a sneak peek of some of the designs at the recent press conference.
Featuring creations by 60 designers, among them well-known local names such as Datuk Tom Abang Saufi, Datuk Radzuan Radziwill, Farah Khan, Melinda Looi, Albert King and Jovian Mandagie………………………………………..Full Article: Source