Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI), the international standard-setting organisation for Islamic finance, has published its new standards publications.

It is entitled Sharia Standards 2010 and Accounting, Auditing, and Governance Standards 2010.

The Sharia Standards 2010 publication contains 41 Sharia standards including 11 new standards.

The new publication was made possible by the support from Alimtiaz Investment of Kuwait and Barwa Bank of Qatar.

AAOIFI secretary-general Dr Mohamad Nedal Alchaar said that the standards have helped Islamic financial institutions throughout the world to ensure that the products and services they offered complied with Sharia.

'The standards have also managed to introduce a high degree of harmonisation of Islamic finance practices across the major Islamic finance markets and consequently place the industry in a stronger position to expand,' he added.-TradeArabia News Service