What character denotes the end of SAS statements?

In SAS programming, the semicolon is the character that signifies the end of a statement. Each complete instruction or statement must conclude with a semicolon for SAS to interpret it correctly. This is crucial for the SAS program to understand when one command finishes and the next begins.

Other characters serve different purposes: for instance, a period is often used at the end of a DATA step or to indicate the end of certain types of PROC statements, but it does not mark the conclusion of every statement. A comma is typically used within statements to separate items in a list, such as variable names or values. The colon has a specific use in the context of informing SAS about certain formats or variables; it does not denote the end of statements. Therefore, the semicolon is unique in logically terminating statements within SAS code, which highlights its importance in SAS syntax.