According to statistics from HCM City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the city has more than 175,000 advertising signs, but more than 8,640 of them are illegal and violate the Advertisement Law.

There are 1,507 advertisements written exclusively in foreign languages.

Under guidance from HCM City's People's Committee, the department has handed down administrative penalties to enterprises that have committed violations, collecting VND2 billion (US$95,200).

Nearly 3,000 illegal advertisements have been removed, Nguyen Van Minh, deputy director of HCM City Department of Cultures, Sports and Tourism, was quoted as saying in Viet Nam Investment Review.

Illegal advertising on the city's 126 roads will also have to be taken down.

Many commercial advertisement panels cover the front area of buildings, which could cause problems in case of a fire.

According to Viet Nam's Advertisement Law, all outdoor advertising must be written in Vietnamese, except brands and trademarks in foreign languages which cannot be translated into Vietnamese.

Le Thanh Ton and Thai Van Lung streets, where there is a large Japanese expatriate community and many foreign tourists, have many signs in other languages.

(Source: VNS)