What is the standard for the profit margin in trade?

The questioner : The profit and its percentage in trade...

The Shaykh : ... .

The questioner : The profit percentage, the percentage of profit on trade goods—I do not know. It is not well-known among people, and it is customary that the Shari'ah has not specified a certain percentage for profit. So, let us say generally, is this correct, my Shaykh?

The Shaykh: Correct.

The questioner : Now, the other matter comes in, glory be to Allah. I discovered this recently, meaning, even if this is not present in other records, let us give an example of this to clarify the picture and see if this statement is valid or not. A person has a specific commodity he offers for sale, and its market price is one dinar, so he says, "I am selling it for one and a half dinars," because the Shari'ah has not specified a limit up to now. There is a problem with this statement.

The Shaykh : There is no problem.

The questioner : There is no problem.

The Shaykh: No.

The questioner: All right.

The Shaykh : But the problem arises later.

The questioner : What is this? This is the other picture now. This item that is one dinar, this one is a foreigner, a Saudi...

The Shaykh : ...

The questioner : The buyer, my Shaykh, is a foreigner, meaning he is not a local, not a local to the market, he does not know. So, do you give him the high price as well, this same thing, or does the ruling change here?

The Shaykh : This is what I want to tell you, my brother. Here comes deception and misleading.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : That is how it came to you... Abu Abdullah, as they say, "Hit me with it."
The student : Hehe... my Shaykh.

The Shaykh : Hmm.
The student : ...

The Shaykh : What is it? What is its type?
The student : This is what, meaning, it will be with two names, my Shaykh.

The Shaykh : Deception does not involve misleading.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : Now, this is the one who sells within the limit of your representation, one dinar, one and a half dinars.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : If a customer says to him, "My brother, this price is high. We asked and they asked us for one dinar."

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : Certainly, he will lie. He will say, "This is the original type, that one is a copy." He will mix his own goods with others' goods, combining injustice to himself with injustice to others.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : And if he did not do this, his goods would stagnate, and customers would turn away from him.

The questioner : Yes, exactly.

The Shaykh : Therefore, it is correct that there is no specific limit for profit. The profit is determined by the market, meaning the economic situation in the country. This is from one side. From the other side, I do not say the Muslim person, but I say the sane person, even if he is not Muslim, and a fortiori if he is Muslim, he will be content with what he earns and be satisfied with the result, because customers will come to him and turn to him instead of others.

The questioner: Yes ...

The Shaykh : And the opposite is the opposite, exactly.

The questioner : This is correct, yes.

The Shaykh : Therefore, those who exploit this rule—and it is undoubtedly a sound rule, one hundred percent, from the Shari'ah perspective and from the economic perspective as well, because it is not valid in any way to impose a specific percentage for profits, because the goods that are sold cannot be classified into one hundred types so that type one has a profit of one percent, type two, and so on.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : So, goods are sold, for example, like cars, sold by the day or by the week, I do not know, this is the car market.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : It is not reasonable that what we sell every day is by the arbal, by the kilo, and perhaps by the qanatir al-maqnatir.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : So, a large sale may have a small profit that equals a small sale that has a large profit, and between them are matters that vary naturally.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : Therefore, it is not reasonable, let alone prescribed, that there be a limit for the profit percentage.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : But exploitation is the problem of Muslims. I always find, meaning, difficulties with people who try to take advantage of the situation for their benefit, and they claim to be asking about a Shari'ah ruling.

The questioner: Yes.

The Shaykh : Yesterday, meaning, the last example was my grandson who was present. One person asked me and said to me, "What is the ruling on a person who fainted for three days?" I said to him, "How? He fainted for three days? Where did this happen? He fainted for three days, and if he is selling, he is not selling."

The questioner: Hehehe.

The Shaykh : Hehe, Allahu Akbar.

The questioner : What was your answer, my Shaykh?

The Shaykh : I did not answer him because he started to mumble in the question after I clarified it to him.
The student : He went back, after he said "not selling," he returned and said, "No, fainted..."
Another student: This, my Shaykh, happens in hot countries.

The Shaykh : It happens. We are not saying it does not happen. We are saying, first, why are you saying "fainted" and when I ask you where it happened, you tell me "not selling"?
The student : My Shaykh, his understanding is...

The Shaykh : May Allah guide you. You are the second one; we warned him and he did not return.
The student : Meaning, after he knew the truth that...

The Shaykh : Yes.

The questioner : Meaning, for the sake of prayer, my Shaykh, meaning.