"It is difficult to make predictions, especially about the future." So said a Danish wit nearly 80 years ago. But when it comes to divining the direction of the economy, why try?

The more connected you are with the world, the greater your ability to engage in trade - by a factor of 6 to 1. Those are the findings of a recent study released by The International Air Transport Association (IATA), which made a quantitative link between a country's air cargo connectivity and global trade.

On the surface, the European airline industry doesn't look much changed from 20 years ago: National flag carriers such as Air France, British Airways, Iberia, KLM and Lufthansa dominate a handful of giant hub airports. Dig a bit deeper, and you'll see that the market has shifted in a big way. Over the past decade or so, 10 legacy airlines across the region have combined into three huge groups, a consolidation that makes the market look a lot like the U.S.

Laws and regulations to eliminate human-rights violations in global supply chains are multiplying. But companies shouldn't consider their current lack of "teeth" as a license to ignore them.

U.S. manufacturing and services firms expect to see rising revenues and profits next year, amid a stronger economy and only modest increases in costs, according to the Institute of Supply Management.