Purpose The purpose of this paper is to deliberate on the establishment of zakat (Islamic alms) on oil and gas in Malaysia. Being one of the five Islamic pillars, zakat contributes significantly to the country’s socio-economic development and prosperity. However, in Malaysia and other Islamic countries, there is not yet a proper mechanism for calculating zakat on extracted minerals. Similar to gold and silver, oil and gas are valuable minerals, which, upon extraction, are subject to zakat payment. In Malaysia, however, this is not the case. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a qualitative method. It presents a thorough review on the stipulation for paying zakat on minerals, specifically oil and gas. The deliberation is based on secondary data entailing a comprehensive content analysis of prominent books on the subject, current zakat rulings and legal acts on oil and gas. Findings Oil and gas are subject to zakat payment, as indicated in several Qur’anic verses and based on the academic reasoning of Muslim scholars. The zakat calculation for oil and gas entails the nisab (minimum threshold value of the assets) but not the hawl (the requirement for one full Islamic year of ownership for the assets), by analogy with zakat on agricultural produce. Despite the obligation to pay zakat on minerals under the zakat al-mal (alms due on wealth) category, oil and gas is yet to be fully subject to this practice in Malaysia, although the country is known as an oil-producing Muslim country. Several legislative acts covering the managerial and business side of oil and gas operations have long been established, but the provision on zakat remains unclear. Hence, comprehensive legislation is needed to fine-tune the Malaysian oil and gas system, particularly with regard to zakat. Research limitations/implications This study relies mainly on secondary data and literature without performing any empirical investigations. Practical implications In terms of academic implication, this study enriches the existing body of knowledge on zakat. Practical implications would include enhanced decision-making concerning zakat on oil and gas on the part of zakat institutions, policymakers and the government of Malaysia. Originality/value This study provides practical and academic contributions to the deep understanding of zakat on oil and gas, which has received very little attention in the existing body of literature. Despite being limited in literature, this is a breakthrough study that sheds light on zakat on oil and gas.

The main objective of the study is to explore the factors influencing the investment decision behaviour among young Muslim adults in Malaysia, and in turn highlight gaps that exist in the academic literature on the variables. Particularly, the study employs the Theory of Planned Behaviour as the main framework with additional variables, namely financial literacy, herding behaviour, and perceived taqwa. This paper highlights the discussion on TPB factors and their relationship with investment decision behaviour among young Muslim adults. The outcome of this study shows that almost all variables are deemed to be associated with investment decision behaviour. This study provides a better understanding of young Muslim adults’ investment decision behaviour among academicians, regulators and practitioners. The paper extends the understanding of TPB to newly emerging contexts such as financial literacy, herding behaviour, and perceived taqwa in understanding factors influencing the investment decision behaviour among young Muslim adults.

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This study carries out empirical analyses using a market-model event study from 26 March 2020 to 20 November 2020. There are three major events highlighted in this article that explain the cyclical and noncyclical stock performance during the COVID-19 outbreak: (a) the implementation of the nationwide Movement control order series (MCOs); (b) the announcement of the economic stimulus package; and (c) the signing of the vaccine agreements. Empirical results are summarized into three main insights: (a) the 10-day event window (CAR −9,0), which entailed the first MCO, was marked by the closure of both public and private non-essential entities, further suspension of events and recreational activities, which negatively affected nationwide economics activities; (b) the 3-day event window (CAR −1,1), which entailed the announcement of the economic stimulus package, resulted in most industries reacting with positive returns except for the oil equipment and services industry; and (c) event window day-293 (CAR +131, +161), which entailed the announcement of the distribution and implementation of COVID-19 vaccines, whereby industries related to the healthcare segments such as equipment and services (+0.0694) and pharmaceuticals and biotechnology (+0.0671) showed positively significant returns at least at the 10% level. Finally, future research could enlighten ownership patterns in Malaysia due to Malaysian companies exhibiting a concentrated ownership structure.

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