President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet in Chile on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit on Nov. 17 to sign the "phase one" trade deal that the two sides hammered out earlier this month.

The South China Morning Post first reported the date of the signing.

China on Tuesday appeared eager to meet U.S. demands in the trade negotiations, particularly on the thorny issue of intellectual property theft — a key irritant in its tariff war with Washington.

Zhang Zhicheng, director of the Intellectual Property Protection Department of the Intellectual Property Office, promised "strict protection, protection, protection, and protection" of the innovations U.S. companies bring when they do business in China. Zhang's office will enforce penalties against companies found to have lifted U.S. intellectual property, he said.

The announcement adds to a drumbeat of market-opening promises by the communist government, which is trying to make China's cooling, state-dominated economy more productive.

Beijing also will ease restrictions on foreign competitors in some newly opened finance businesses, the Commerce Ministry said.

Complaints about Beijing's technology ambitions helped to spark its tariff war with President Donald Trump.

TRUMP: US-CHINA TRADE DEAL'S PHASE ONE AHEAD OF SCHEDULE

Trade negotiators are working out details of an Oct. 11 agreement under which President Donald Trump delayed a planned tariff hike on Chinese imports. Trump said Beijing agreed to buy more American farm goods in exchange, though China has yet to confirm details of its commitment.

Business groups welcomed the agreement as a possible step to breaking a deadlock in the 15-month-old conflict, though the two sides have yet to report progress on their core disputes over Beijing's trade surplus and technology policies.

Those include complaints from Washington, Europe and other trading partners that Chinese development plans are based in part on stealing or pressuring companies to hand over technology.

Authorities will be banned from "explicitly or implicitly" pressuring companies to give up technology, said a ministry official, Ye Wei.

CHINA SAYS PART OF PHASE ONE TRADE DEAL WITH US 'BASICALLY COMPLETED'

That pledge, if carried out, builds on a law enacted in March that prohibits use of "administrative tools" to force companies to give up industrial secrets. Business groups said that might leave officials free to use other leverage.

"Administrative organs may not implicitly or explicitly force the transfer of technology by foreign investors or foreign-invested enterprises," Ye said.