Almal indexes Islamic equity conservatism

The Kuwait-based Almal Investment Company KCSC has developed the Almal US Shariah-compatible Index (USSCI) in order to offer Islamic investors a more conservative market index than the Dow Jones Islamic index (DJIM). USSCI uses a shari`a screening system with a financial debt to assets ratio of no more than 33.33%, whereas Dow Jones compares debt to market capitalization. USSCI consists of 250 of the most heavily traded companies in US exchanges that adhere to shari`a guidelines. Almal's USSCI provides more global-minded investors with a resource for trading US based companies, while proving that investing in accordance with the shari`a can still be profitable.