HONG KONG - HONG KONG has appointed Morgan Stanley Asia chairman Stephen Roach and Standard Chartered chairman Mervyn Davies to an economic task force to deal with the worsening global financial crisis.

'This will help us weather the storm and turn a crisis into an opportunity,' Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang told reporters on Tuesday.

Mr David Burton, Asia Pacific's head of the International Monetary Fund, will attend the first meeting.

The task force, which will have 10 members, will make preliminary assessments of the impact of the financial crisis on the global and local economies and form a work plan for the coming months.

'The damage that the financial tsunami has inflicted on the global economy has yet to be fully revealed,' Mr Tsang said.

'We need to evaluate the situation, consider ways to respond, identify new opportunities and ultimately enhance our international competitiveness.'

Other group members include Li & Fung chairman Victor Fung, HSBC's group general manager and global co-head of commercial banking Margaret Leung, partner of KPMG Ayesha Macpherson, and chairman of Johnson Electric Holdings Ltd Patrick Wang. -- REUTERS