I’m a sucker for macro-level trends. (Focusing on the big picture or historical perspective is the only thing that gets this Cleveland Browns fan through one losing season after another.) Fortunately, forward-thinking analysis within the hotel industry has been downright rosy in recent months, thanks to a return of performance fundamentals.

Take the global hospitality team at Ernest & Young, who released their “Global Hospitality Insights:  Top Thoughts for 2011” last week. The report details a number of key trends—mostly positive—to keep an eye on during the coming year. Here are 5:

1. Supply down, demand up
If there are any silver linings to be had as a result of the worldwide economic crisis, it’s the dearth of hotel construction. A lack of financing and ongoing regulatory reform will restrict develop for the coming years, which should drive occupancies and rates up as demand returns to previous peaks, particularly in key global business markets such as New York and Hong Kong.

2. Public markets offer outlet
The spigot on traditional private financing might be clamped tighter than the lid on a pickle jar, but that’s not to say financing in general has been tapped dry. As the global economy recovers and grows and hotel market fundamentals improve, more hotel owners may be able to access public-equity markets for fresh capital. Among the best sources, of course, are the publically traded REITs. There are more than 10 in the U.S., with more than US$20 billion in total market cap.

3. The ‘China factor’
China is expected to surpass U.S. business travel by 2015—a trend fueled by government interaction in the Americas, Europe and Japan to expedite tourist visas for Chinese nationals.  Asia is expected to account for more than 41% of worldwide growth in outbound travel and tourism during the next decade.

4. BRICs emerge
This is the dawning of the age of the BRIC countries, as travelers from Brazil, Russia, India and China will propel global hospitality market growth during the next decade. Burgeoning middle classes and national economies are set to spur both inbound business and leisure travel for years to come. The fact that Brazil and Russia are hosting two Olympics and two FIFA World Cups between them certainly doesn’t hurt either.

5. Investors awake from hibernation
After burning through the fat they acquired during the hotel heydays of ’06 and ’07, groggy investors are slowly waking from hibernation, emerging from their winter cave dwellings while wiping the sleep out of their eyes as they adjust to the sunny prospects of a financially viable market. (My wording, not Ernst & Young’s.)

“We’ve seen a few distressed asset and note purchase opportunities in the last 12 months and we have no doubt there will be more in 2011, but we also expect to see equity investors take advantage of opportunities presented by upcoming debt maturities to purchase institutional grade assets this year,” said Michael Fishbin, leader of Ernst & Young’s global hospitality practice, in a press release.

Several recent surveys of hotel investors have been bullish, with most observers anticipating occupancies, ADR and NOI returning to peak levels during 2012, 2013 and 2014, respectively. Investors will want to lock in deals before the numbers get too good and prices rise.