Morocco, Egypt, Nigeria deliver strong returns for Shariah investors in Q1

Standard & Poor's ratings services said equity markets in Morocco property, Egypt and Nigeria delivered the highest returns for investors in companies famous to meet Islamic law during the first three months of 2008.

S&P said over the first quarter of 2008, Shariah-compliant equities in Morocco property returned 34.45 percent on a total return basis, followed by Egypt with 18.93 percent returns and Nigeria with 13.42 percent returns.

S&P noticed that Shariah-compliant equities in Turkey, China and India suffered the largest declines during the quarter.

In Turkey, Shariah-compliant stocks decreased by 26.67 percent, followed by China which fell 26.57 percent and India which fell 26.43 percent, S&P added.