China denies Trump: "We have not engaged in any consultations or negotiations regarding tariffs"

China's Foreign Ministry publicly denied President Donald Trump, who claimed Wednesday that Washington and Beijing are in talks to reach trade deals to end the tariff war that threatens world markets.

Guo Jiakun, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, held a press conference claiming that reports of ongoing negotiations between the two powers were false.

"China and the U.S. have not engaged in any consultations or negotiations regarding tariffs, let alone reached an agreement," the spokesman said.

Moreover, while assuring that China is open to dialogue, he also sent a threat: “If it’s a fight, we will fight to the end.”

With historic tariffs of 145%, the highest applied to any country, Trump has intensified his trade offensive against China in recent weeks, arguing unfair practices by the Asian giant. In response, the Chinese government also raised its own tariffs on U.S. products to 125%, setting up what many experts already consider a mutual trade embargo.

The escalation of the trade conflict between the world's two largest economies has sparked warnings of a possible global recession, provoking sharp swings and volatility in financial markets, a phenomenon that has already been seen in previous episodes of tension between the two powers.

On Wednesday, however, tensions appeared to ease briefly when the Trump administration suggested it was in talks with Beijing to reduce tariffs.

But as usual for the Trump Administration, the message was mixed. While President Trump claimed that "everybody wants to be a part of what we’re doing" and assured that the U.S. and China are in direct contact "every day" to reach a trade deal, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was much more cautious, suggesting that no talks are ongoing.

According to Secretary Bessent, "both sides are waiting to speak to the other," without giving further details. He also reiterated his statements of the previous day, where he anticipated a possible de-escalation in the short term: "I don’t think either side believes that the current tariff levels are sustainable, so I would not be surprised if they went down in a mutual way."

Meanwhile, a senior Trump administration official revealed to NBC News that there are indeed communications between the two countries, but at a mid-level, not involving cabinet members.