More effort is needed to entice Australian business next door to Indonesia and portray it as a growing economic powerhouse in the same light as China.
That's the view of a joint parliamentary committee that examined the merits of a free trade deal being negotiated by Canberra and Jakarta.
There was an acceptance within the business community that being involved in China was of premier importance despite the political, governance and cultural barriers to trade.
Barriers to business are similar in Indonesia.
However Indonesia "offers equal, if not greater, the opportunity to Australian business and yet it is not seen in the same light," the committee's report said.
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The committee urged the government to run a campaign to promote mutual opportunities once a free trade deal was finalised.
Trade ties between the two countries have historically been underdone.
While Indonesia is Australia's 12th largest trading partner there are only about 500 Australian businesses with a presence in the country.
Indonesia's middle class of more than 45 million is forecast to grow to 135 million by 2030 and by 2050, PricewaterhouseCoopers expects Indonesia's economy to be larger than that of the United Kingdom, France and Australia.
The committee recommended the trade pact should not waive labour market testing nor carry controversial investor-state dispute settlement clauses.
The clauses give companies a right to access an international tribunal if they believe actions taken by a host government breach its investment obligations.
The committee also called for the Productivity Commission to carry out an independent analysis of the merits of a deal.
