And between now and 2050, it’s estimated that more than one-and-a-half billion people will join the ranks of the world’s middle class.

The rise of the global middle class is creating a HUGE opportunity for investors – but it’s not where you think.

You see, whether newly-minted middle class folks in Macao or Abu Dhabi are buying a new MacBook or Sony Vaio really doesn’t matter to me. What matters is that whether you leave it plugged in or running off the laptop’s lithium-ion battery, you’re using energy. And that’s one of the biggest industries to benefit from the rise of the global middle class.

Just as how when my income kicked up -- I upgraded appliances and bought a few new electronic gadgets to make my life more fun (hey, I need something to do when the markets are closed) -- the same is true across the world. Some of that new wealth is going into energy-intensive products and services.

Energy – the Great Enabler of the Middle Class

So, energy is global. And unlike the latest consumer fad, energy consumption is easy to predict: onward and upward. Even China thinks that its energy usage will more than double between now and 2030. That’s a huge profit potential!

And as you can see in the chart below, energy will grow across the board, but traditional sources of energy like coal and oil will still be the major source of power fueling China’s energy demand. Same thing with India, and a host of other developing countries.

Huge-Profit-Potential Investing in Energy for the Long Haul

And for most people in this world, seeing their income rapidly triple (and beyond) is highly likely. As more people join the ranks of the world’s middle class, the great global rush provides a fantastic opportunity to profit from the world’s growing demand for energy.

The global rise of the middle class is akin to the rise of the middle class in America. Yes, the details will be different, but many of the underlying causes remain the same: rising urbanization, an increase in division of labor, and expansion of the rule of law favorable to property rights.

Industrialization brought Americans from farms to factories – and eventually to white-collar jobs. Now, a similar theme is playing out on a much larger scale today.

As people grow richer, demand rises for the trappings of a middle-class lifestyle. That means a demand for cars, larger homes, heating and cooling, more restaurants, clothing styles, and other opportunities. And my friend Jeff Opdyke is continually visiting these countries … seeing exactly what people are spending their newfound money on. (Click here to watch a brief video of his newest research report.)

What do all of those new purchases have in common? All of those things require… you guessed it … increased energy!

There’s no reason why the rest of the world should enjoy the kind of middle-class lifestyle that Americans have enjoyed for decades. And there’s no reason why you and I can’t benefit from this decades-long trend to protect and grow our wealth even more.

Andrew Packer, Editor
Exit Alert Strategist
Credit Crunch Short Report
Blog: http://packer.sovereignsociety.com/