Although the latest unemployment numbers for New York City still show tough times for many job seekers, recent reports from a number of resources show the polar opposite for those in the information technology industry. According tot he most recent numbers, the overall unemployment rate for New York City was 9.5 percent in June, experts estimate the rate is half that, or even lower, for the high-tech industry.

Some companies are even engaging in battles for hard-to-find tech talent, said a spokesman from Dice, a career website for technology and engineering professionals.

According to July’s Dice Report, the New York-New Jersey region was ranked #1 across top metro areas by the number of new job posts on the website, with more than 8,200 tech positions. That’s almost twice the number of postings for tech jobs in Silicon Valley (which came in at No. 3) and more than Chicago (No. 4), Los Angeles (No. 5) and Boston (No. 6) combined. Washington-Baltimore came in second place, with 7,400 posts.

That's the fifth straight month of companies posting more jobs on the site.

In Manhattan, the information technology job market showed remarkable strength during the second quarter, according to the Pace/SkillPROOF IT Index Report, also known as PSII. The index, which provides a snapshot of IT job openings at major firms, saw a 47 percent increase, from 74 to 110. It was the largest quarterly gain since the index began tracking data in 2004, according to the report.

Pace University says the index behaves much like a leading economic indicator, in that the IT employment market rises and falls before the economy does. He sees the index growth as a sign that companies are feeling optimistic and are looking to “take advantage of the technological advancements.”