The nation's top court on Wednesday ordered the government to go public with reports and research results it created in the process of negotiating a free trade agreement with China.

The Supreme Court, ruling in favor of the Lawyers for a Democratic Society, accepted the demand for the nullification of the non-disclosure decision on the reports, including content on the two countries' economic capabilities.

The government had denied the claim of information disclosure in 2012, citing a possible impact on the ongoing negotiations.

The top court, while acknowledging the possible weakening of South Korea's bargaining power in case the analysis on the deal's impact is disclosed, said that sheer statistics or comparisons with the countries' economic power cannot be deemed confidential information.

The free trade agreement came into force last week, about six months after the two nations formally signed the deal aimed at slashing tariffs and other trade barriers.

The deal will eventually remove tariffs on about 90 percent of goods between the two nations over the next two decades.

China is South Korea's largest trading partner, as two-way trade stood at about $290 billion last year. (Yonhap)