Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah said: “The four Imams and the rest of the scholars—save for an isolated view—agree that zakāt is obligatory on trade goods, whether the merchant is resident or travelling; whether he is a mutarabbiṣ, meaning one who buys merchandise when it is cheap and stores it until prices rise, or a mudīr like the shopkeepers in the markets; whether the goods are new cloth, second-hand garments, staple foods, fruit, condiments, and the like; or utensils such as pottery and similar items; or livestock—slaves, horses, mules, donkeys, or stall-fed sheep and so forth. Trade goods make up the greater part of the hidden wealth of urban dwellers, just as grazing animals constitute the greater part of visible wealth.” End of the Shaykh’s words—may Allah have mercy on him.

For zakāt to be due on trade goods, four conditions must be fulfilled:

1. The owner must acquire them through his own action—such as purchase, accepting a gift, a bequest, hire, or any other avenue of gain.

2. He must acquire them with the intention of trade, seeking profit thereby; for “actions are judged by intentions,” and trade is an action, so the intention must accompany it as with all other deeds.

3. Their value must reach the niṣāb according to either of the two currencies (gold or silver).

4. A full lunar year must elapse over them, based on the Prophet’s statement, “No zakāt is due on wealth until a year has passed over it.” Yet if he buys merchandise with money amounting to a niṣāb, or with goods whose value equals a niṣāb, he continues counting from the year already accrued on the capital he used for the purchase.

As for the manner of paying zakāt on trade goods: at the completion of the lunar year they are appraised on the basis of one