China’s defence spending is set to increase at a slower rate this year, as Beijing grapples with the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.  RSIS Associate Research Fellow James Char said the slowing growth of military spending should not have a big impact on the PLA’s modernisation push over the near to medium term. “But if such a trend continues on a long-term basis, this will certainly have an emasculatory effect on the PLA’s future progress,” he said.