Types of trade: All Arab tribes recognized the Al-Oqilat as carriers of trade (Najdis Beyond the Borders, p. 128). Camel and horse trading: Governments imposed duties on camel traders, and the rates differed from one country to another. In Jordan, for example, a duty of seven Jordanian piastres was charged on every camel sold in the capital, Amman; one dinar equaled one hundred piastres. Syria charged two liras per camel. Egypt levied the lowest duties: the Egyptian government charged three piastres per camel, while the highest price of a camel there was thirty pounds. This made trade in Egypt more active than elsewhere. Camel trading was the principal foundation of Al-Oqilat commerce. They bought camels throughout the Arabian Peninsula, then traveled to Jordan and the Levant, while Egypt was the largest market for buying and selling. They likewise traded in purebred Arabian horses. General merchandise: The Al-Oqilat bought goods in the Fertile Crescent and brought them to Najd and the Hejaz for sale, including fabrics, wool, utensils, rice, sugar, tea, weapons, and other merchandise. They also traded in ghee, buying it along their westbound or eastbound journeys and taking it to other markets.
A saying of the Emir of Kuwait: It was the custom of the Emir of Kuwait, Mubarak Al-Sabah, when seated in the palace early in the morning, to ask who had arrived from Najd. When told that the people of Buraidah—the Al-Oqilat—had arrived, he would say, ‘Give the camel owners the good news.’ He would then ask who else had come. When told that the people of Shaqra had arrived, he would say, ‘Give the carpet merchants the good news.’ End of the Emir's saying, may God have mercy on him. He meant that the presence of people from Al-Qassim strengthened the market and increased buying and selling. The Al-Oqilat primarily bought camels from across the Arabian Peninsula, then drove them to major markets in Arab countries: Kuwait, Iraq, Jordan, the Levant, Palestine, and Egypt. Compiled and prepared by Mr. Abdul Latif bin Saleh Al-Wuhaibi.
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