Vatican newspaper highlights growing wealth inequality

December 18, 2025

In a front-page article in its December 17 edition, the Vatican newspaper highlighted rising global inequality in wealth.

In “Quando più ricchezza significa più disuguaglianza“ [When more wealth means more inequality], Beatrice Guerrera drew extensively on the recently released World Inequality Report 2026, published by the World Inequality Lab; she also cited Pope Leo XIV’s December 17 general audience. Guerrera began:

In 2025, the wealth of multi-millionaires increased globally, and at the same time, poverty and inequality also increased. This is what emerges from the World Inequality Report 2026, a multidimensional analysis released in recent days and carried out thanks to the contribution of over 200 researchers. The data reveals the consequences of that finance “idolized at the bloody price” of human life and creation, of which Pope Leo XIV spoke in today’s catechesis, Wednesday, December 17.

“While progressive taxation should limit the political influence of extreme wealth, the research shows that, in reality, billionaires often pay proportionally lower taxes than the majority of the population,” Guerrera added. “This not only undermines tax justice but also deprives societies of the resources needed for education, healthcare, and climate action.”

 

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Further information:

• Quando più ricchezza significa più disuguaglianza (L'Osservatore Romano, 12/17/25)
• World Inequality Report 2026