Accrual and cash flow measures have been argued to be able to evaluate firms' performance, although the results are inconclusive throughout countries and time. This study examined the accrual and cash flow measures independently and jointly among Malaysian firms. The study predicted that the low cash flow subgroups (high income to cash flow firms) would show better results in operating, investing and financing activities. Our descriptive analysis of the structural components of the firms seemed to confirm that low cash firms relatively had higher sales, total assets and shareholders' equity than the high cash firms, indicating that these firms showed better operating performance than other subgroups. With regard to the investing and financing activities, small firm group confirmed the expectations but big firms exhibit different results. Further analysis on the correlation among variables yielded evidence to suggest that there is a significant relationship between non-current assets and debt with investing and financing cash flows, in the expected direction of movement. Using income and cash flow measures, independently and jointly, the results show that none of the measures can be used to evaluate Malaysian firms' performance. The findings appear to be not supportive of previous research which argued that income and cash flow measures have incremental and joint information in assessing firms' performance.

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This paper examines the relevance of Islamic environmental theology in contemporary Islamic society. Islamic law or Shariah gives a significant prominence to environmental care. The responsibility to care for the environment is set at individual and societal levels, as outlined in the primary sources of Shariah. In line with the industrial and vast economic development, the modern jurists have extended the moral and religious obligations to firms. Environment is an important element that supports the objective of Shariah or maqasid al-Shariah, which is to safeguard the interests of all beings. However, the current devastating state of the global environment, including those of Islam-majority and Islam- dominated countries, poses major challenges to the maqasid al-Shariah. Environmental degradation is threatening the dharuriyyah level of maqasid al-Shariah, or the basic necessities of human. In view of this devastating phenomenon, this paper highlights the relevance of Islamic legal maxim of harm prevention, and how it can provide an impetus to the global environmental sustainability in modifying human attitudes and actions pertaining to the environment. We conclude that progressive interpretations of Shariah by way of incorporating vast economic development and social changes are important to address new necessities of maqasid al-Shariah. While holding on to the principles of Shariah, religious rulings pertaining to environmental matters are to be aligned to the current changing needs and problems of the society.

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