Economic guidelines in Islam

Of the two groups of modern economies--market economies and centrally planned economies--market economies use supply and demand to fix prices and upholds the value of private property. The government's function in such environments is primarily is to keep the peace within the society. In Communist societies, the means of production are publicly owned and individuals are supposed to contribute services as their abilities allow. It cannot be said that any economy is at the extreme of no regulation or at the extreme of total regulation. Although it is difficult to evaluate economies against each other, it can be said that freedom in market economies is not generally present. Mechanisms of the market serve to compel action. In planned economies, efficiency proves elusive. In looking at Islamic economics, it is necessary to turn to al-Qur'an and the Sunnah in order to address issues of this age that is so different from the Prophet''s age. Islam looks down on asceticism and al-Qur