Dubai ranks as the No. 1 travel shopping destination in the world for Muslims who spend $142 billion on tourism annually.

According to a new report released by MasterCard and CrescentRating Dubai tops the list of shopping destinations for Muslims outright with a weighted score of 79.5 out of 100 in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Muslim Travel Shopping Index (MTSI) 2015.

Dubai's next closest competitor is Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia with a score of 73.3 emphasising just how successfully Dubai has been able to market itself as a leading shopping destination.

Sharjah ranked as the fifth-highest MTSI destination in the Arab world coming in 12th overall with a competitive score of 55.3 said the report released ahead of the upcoming Global Islamic Summit to be held in Dubai.

With the Islamic economy growing at nearly twice the rate of the global economy consumer spending of Muslims across the globe now exceeds $1.8 trillion.

The MTSI was released during MasterCard's Innovation Forum in Kuala Lumpur. It analyses the trends and preferences of the Muslim traveller shopping market based on the performance of 40 main international shopping destinations against a number of set criteria.

Other cities from within the Arab World performed strongly on MTSI 2015. Manama was the second-highest ranked destination in the Arab World according to the MTSI Index for destinations within the OIC coming in at seventh overall with a score of 59.6. Doha was close behind with an overall ranking of eighth and a score of 59.5. Riyadh was the fourth-highest ranked destination in the MTSI 2015 OIC list for the region with an overall ranking of ninth and a weighted score of 59.3.

Raghu Malhotra division president for the Middle East and North Africa at MasterCard said that with 108 million Muslim travellers representing 10 per cent of the entire travel economy in 2014 and forecast to grow even further to 150 million visitors by 2020 it is evident this segment of the travel market represents a huge opportunity for both public and private sector organisations. "We are very pleased to publish this Index on the travel and shopping patterns of Muslim communities in order for organisations around the world to more effectively target and capture share of this lucrative travel sector" said Malhotra.

Earlier this year Dubai was ranked among the top five most popular destination cities in the world in MasterCard's 2015 Global Destination Cities Index and has consistently advanced its position since the annual index first launched in 2012. This further underlines the city's dynamism and enduring positive reputation amongst international travellers.

The MTSI uses a comprehensive set of metrics to rank destinations including a city's suitability as a shopping destination its Muslim-friendly services and facilities and its ease of travel and family friendliness. Collectively these factors contribute to the overall score and ranking of each destination.

According to the key findings of the report total expenditure of Muslim travellers visiting the 40 cities included in the report amounted to $36 billion in 2014. Of this total expenditure $9.3 billion (26 per cent) was spent on shopping.

Some 56 per cent of respondents shop for souvenirs as typical purchases while 45 per cent shop for local clothing brands. 40 per cent of respondents also purchase Islamic clothing and accessories while 38 per cent chose traditional handicrafts to buy.

Results of the study highlight that 27 per cent of respondents spend between $250-$500 on shopping whilst travelling while 24 per cent spend between $500-$1000 and 20 per cent spend over $1000.

When travelling 55 per cent of the survey pool still prefer to use cash for purchases. Thirty-five per cent on the other hand prefer using credit cards for their purchases while six per cent utilise debit cards.

-