Salman Ahmed Shaikh's Blog, page 4

What is Money

The first role of money is to be a store of value- something that is expected to retain its value in a reasonably predictable way over time. Gold or silver that was mined hundreds of years ago would still be valuable today” (source)  - So think of it as something that doesn’t really get affected by inflation, and hence won’t lose its value. Money’s second role is to be a unit of account. The thing that goods and services are priced in terms of. For example, the price of items you see on menus and tags. Pound is currency of the United Kingdom, but it could be a type of good instead. It could also be barter: ‘give me 5 goats if you want my new horse.

Highlights of the IFSB Report 2025

Total IFSI assets reached USD 3.88 trillion, marking a significant 14.9% year-on-year (YoY) growth compared to 2023. This acceleration in asset growth outpaced the average rates of recent years. The growth momentum reflected accommodative global financial conditions in 2024 driven by lower interest rate expectations and easing inflation, which revived market sentiment and capital flows, alongside sustained demand for Islamic financial services, and increased market participation across key Islamic finance jurisdictions.

Beyond Integrative Approaches: Methodological Tensions in Islamic Economics

Islamic Economics stands at a crossroads. To analyse what is, it must pragmatically adapt mainstream tools—provided they are stripped of reductionist assumptions. To articulate what ought to be, however, it must dare to innovate: developing tawhid-centric models that reflect humanity’s role as Allah’s stewards (khalifah). This dual approach rejects both uncritical integration and isolationist purism. As Dr. Shaikh advocates, pluralistic methodology allows IE to engage the mainstream while retaining its soul. The goal is not to mimic physics-envying economics, but to redefine economics itself—as a science of human flourishing, anchored in divine guidance. In the words of the Quran, “Do they not contemplate the Kingdom of the heavens and the earth?” (7:185). Islamic Economics, at its best, is this contemplation enacted—a discipline where tools serve truth, not the other way around.

Moral Reflections on Economics, Vol 5, Issue 6

June 2025 issue (Vol 5, Issue 6) of Moral Reflections on Economics features article “Beyond Integrative Approaches: Methodological Tensions in Islamic Economics” by Aaliah Rafee, highlights of the IFSB Report 2025 by Muhammad Hammad, article on “What is Money” by Muhamed Ahmed, book review of "Economic Thinking of Arab Muslim Writers During the Nineteenth Century" by Prof. Abdul Azim Islahi, research paper in focus on Homo Islamicus and Homo Economicus by Dr. Setiawan and Dr. Sultan, reflections on Khutba-e-Hajjat-ul-Wida and regular sections of market news, economic and financial indicators and call for papers.

Monetary Policy and Islamic Banks: A Critical Literature Review

The authors conclude that more research is needed to fully understand the relationship between monetary policy and Islamic banking. They emphasize the importance of considering factors like the structure of Islamic banks’ balance sheets and the influence of profit-and-loss sharing in deposits and financing. The authors note that the existing research has a lack of theoretical grounding. Most studies focus on whether monetary policy influences Islamic banks, but they do not investigate why this happens. The authors suggest that the theory of Islamic finance could offer explanations.

Methodology of Islamic Economics

The book explains that the objective of religious life should be to change this world, including the personality of the individual himself and extending to the whole of human society, so as to reconstruct it in accordance with the will of Allah as revealed in the Qur’an. The religion should be understood directly from the Qur’an aided by the Sunnah, and all human interpretations should be treated as secondary, tentative and, in principle, liable to error and open to correction.

Highlights of Global Energy Review 2025 Report

Different elements of the world’s energy system saw very different growth rates in 2024, reflecting the impact of short-term factors and deeper structural trends. Global energy demand grew by 2.2% in 2024, a notably faster rate than the annual average of 1.3% seen between 2013 and 2023. This uptick was partly due to the effect of extreme weather, which we estimate added 0.3 percentage points to the 2.2% growth. Despite this, energy demand grew more slowly than the global economy, which expanded by 3.2% in 2024, close to its long-term average.

Labour in Comparative Economic Systems

In Marxian economics, it is argued that labor creates surplus value in the production process that capitalists extract in the exchange process. Marx said that the capitalist purchases the use value of labor (service) and pays labor something equivalent to the exchange value of labor time. It is barely enough to keep the labor survive. However, when the capitalist sells products created by “labor power,” these products command more exchange value and this excess is known as surplus value. The surplus accumulates and this is exploitation of labor by the capitalists.

Moral Reflections on Economics, Vol 5, Issue 5

May 2025 issue (Vol 5, Issue 5) of Moral Reflections on Economics features Remembering Prof. Khurshid Ahmad Labour in Comparative Economic Systems by Salman Ahmed Shaikh  Highlights of Global Energy Review Report 2025 by Muhammad Hammad Book review of Methodology of Islamic Economics edited by Syed Agil and Aidit Ghazali Research paper in focus on Monetary Policy and Islamic Banking by Zakaria Savon and Abdellah Yousfi Reflections on “Control Over Past and Present” Regular sections of market news, economic and financial indicators and call for papers.

Life and Works of Prof. Khurshid Ahmad

Prof. Khurshid Ahmad passed away on April 13, 2025 at the age of 93 years in Leicester, UK. He was born on March 23, 1932 in Delhi. He was a renowned scholar, academic, economist, prolific writer, policymaker and legislator.