The leisure and hospitality, manufacturing and business services industries led job gains for the month of July, besting laggards like government and utilities, according to the latest government jobs report.

CNBC analyzed the net changes by industry for July based on the data from the Labor Department, which found that the U.S. economy created 157,000 jobs last month, less than the 190,000 estimated increase from economists surveyed by Reuters.

The professional and business services sector was the biggest net job gainer for the month, with an increase of 51,000 positions. Of those gains, more than half came from hiring in administrative and support services.

Leisure and hospitality also posted a strong month, adding to the sector's solid gains in May and June with 40,000 more jobs. This industry includes jobs such as performing arts, spectator sports, museums, and food services.