Nearly two thirds (60%) of UK households saw their disposable incomes decline last month due to the job market cooling, new data from Asda shows.

The supermarket’s latest Income Tracker found that families with the lowest incomes were hit the hardest, seeing their spending power fall by 4.2% compared to last year.

This marks the first time in over a year that the disposable incomes of these households have fallen, leaving them with a shortfall of £71 per week between what they earn and what they spend on bills and living costs.

Asda said that income growth for these households is expected to slow further, due to cuts in social security and welfare payments.

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In contrast, the grocer said that the highest-earning households are well protected from these cuts. This, with the cooling job market, is causing the UK’s income gap to widen further.

These households have an average of £907 left each week after paying bills and essentials.

Sam Miley, managing economist and forecasting lead at economic specialist CEBR, said: “Spending power is likely to face further pressure in the coming months as a number of policy changes come into play.

“Increased energy and water bills, higher council tax, and rising employer costs are all expected to impact consumers, particularly those on lower incomes.”

Last month, Asda cut the prices of 1,500 products in-store and online, in the latest wave of its Rollback price proposition.

This means that nearly 10,000 products – almost a third of the supermarket giant’s entire range – has been reduced in price since the proposition was first introduced at the end of January.