According to the Atlanta Business Chronicle, the Atlanta job market showed small signs of improvement during the first half of 2011. From January to June, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 33,900 jobs were added. Total employment in the private sector was up 42,200 jobs.

We’ll file this story under “any improvement is better than none at all.” The report also breaks down job growth by sector. Here are the some statistics on the industries that have seen jobs increase this year.

• Leisure and Hospitality: Although this industry is highly seasonal, seeing an increase of +20,600 is still a good sign.
• Professional and business services: +11,200
• Construction: +6,000
• Transportation and warehousing: +3,900
• Manufacturing: +2,800
• Health Care: +2,100

One industry that continues to cut jobs is the financial sector. To date, 3,700 jobs have been eliminated . Another negative is the educational services sector, which has eliminated 2,200 jobs so far.

While places like Texas have been quick to recover, Atlanta lags behind due to its dependence on banking and commercial real estate. Because these two sectors were some of the ones hit hardest by the Great Recession, it only makes sense that Atlanta still has a long road ahead. However, as long as positive reports like this keep appearing, there is proof that the city is moving in the right direction.