Indo-Asian News Service has reported that UAE-based hotel management company Landmark Hotel Management LLC intends to launch Shariah compliant hotels and apartments in the UAE and Saudi Arabia by the end of 2010. The move would cater to the increasing demand for Shariah compliant hotels in the Middle East. According to the World Tourism Organization, travelers from the Gulf region spend more than $12 billion annually on leisure travel.

Full Story Here: http://newshopper.sulekha.com/uae-firm-to-launch-shariah-compliant-hotels_news_926996.htm

GE Capital, the finance arm of General Electric (NYSE: GE), recently completed a $500 million Sukuk (Islamic bond) on NASDAQ Dubai, the Middle East’s international exchange. The Sukuk was the first to be issued by a major U.S. company and was sold to investors across the Middle East, Asia and Europe on November 27, 2009.

GE Capital’s five-year, fixed-rate dollar-denominated Sukuk is an Ijara based structure and was issued through GE Capital Sukuk Ltd, a subsidiary of GE Capital. The assets underlying the Sukuk are interests in a portfolio of aircraft and rental payments from the lease of such aircraft.

Full Story Here: http://www.eyeofdubai.com/v1/news/newsdetail-37235.htm

Thomas Reuters, which owns Westlaw Business, announced that it has formed an agreement with the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) to provide standards and other Islamic finance industry information for global business and law professionals. AAOIFI helps address issues that determine whether certain transactions or activities are compliant with Sharia laws and this information is essential in providing practitioners with the insights necessary to successfully structure transactions. AAOIFI standards are developed in consultation with leading Sharia scholars and experts in the field of banking, insurance, economics, law and asset management, thereby contributing to the professional development of the industry.

Full story here: http://www.bi-me.com/main.php?id=42749&t=1&c=35&cg=4&mset=1011

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