What does the INFILE statement define in SAS?

The INFILE statement in SAS is essential because it indeed specifies the path for importing external data files. When you use the INFILE statement, you are informing SAS about the source of the data you want to read into your program, whether it be a text file (like CSV or TXT) or any other type of external data that needs to be processed. This statement sets the context and parameters for how SAS will access and read the data from the specified external file.

The INFILE statement is integral to reading raw data, as it can include various options that control how the data is read, such as delimiters, file formats, and whether the data should be read as a whole or line-by-line.

The other choices focus on different aspects of data manipulation in SAS that do not pertain directly to the INFILE statement. For instance, the definition of a location for saving output files relates to the OUTFILE or FILE statements, while variables are defined with the DATA step or associated statements, and formats for display are managed through FORMAT statements. Thus, understanding the purpose of the INFILE statement helps in effectively importing and utilizing external data in SAS programming.