The MOVE Statement

 If identifier-1 is reference modified, subscripted, or is a function-identifier, the reference modifier, subscript, or function-identifier is evaluated only once, immediately before data is moved to the first of the receiving operands.

 The result of the statement:

 MOVE a(b) TO b, c(b)

 is equivalent to:

 MOVE a(b) TO temp MOVE temp TO b MOVE temp TO c(b)

 where temp is an intermediate result item provided by your COBOL system.

 national, national-edited, boolean

 or floating-point.

These categories are described in the PICTURE clause. Numeric literals belong to the category numeric, and nonnumeric literals belong to the category alphanumeric. The figurative constant ZERO belongs to the category numeric when moved to a numeric or numeric-edited item. The figurative constant ZERO belongs to the category alphanumeric in all other cases. The figurative constant SPACE belongs to the category alphabetic. All other figurative constants belong to the category alphanumeric.

The following rules apply to an elementary move between these categories:

1. The figurative constant SPACE, or an alphanumeric-edited, or alphabetic data item must not be moved to a numeric or numeric-edited data item.
2. A numeric-edited data item must not be moved to a numeric or numeric-edited data item

    , or boolean

   .

    This restriction is removed.

3. A numeric literal, the figurative constant ZERO, a numeric data item or a numeric-edited data item

    , or a boolean data item

   must not be moved to an alphabetic data item.
4. A non-integer numeric literal or a non-integer numeric data item must not be moved to an alphanumeric or alphanumeric-edited data item

    , or boolean data item

   .
5.  If identifier-2 is a boolean data item, it can only receive figurative constants whose associated characters are boolean characters.
6.  An alphabetic, alphanumeric-edited, numeric, or national data item must not be moved to a boolean data item.
7.  A boolean data item must not be moved to a national data item.
8. All other elementary moves are legal and are performed according to the rules given in General Rule 5.

 , or de-editing implied by,

1. When an alphanumeric-edited or alphanumeric item is a receiving item, alignment and any necessary space-filling takes place as defined in the topic Standard Alignment Rules in the chapter Concepts of the COBOL Language. If the size of the sending item is greater than the size of the receiving item, the excess characters are truncated on the right after the receiving item is filled. If the sending item is described as being signed numeric, the operational sign is not moved; if the operational sign occupies a separate character position (see the topic The SIGN Clause), that character is not moved and the size of the sending item is considered to be one less than its actual size (in terms of standard data format characters).
2. When a numeric or numeric-edited item is the receiving item, alignment by decimal point and any necessary zero-filling takes place as defined in the section Standard Alignment Rules in the chapter Concepts of the COBOL Language, except where zeros are replaced because of editing requirements.

    When the sending operand is numeric-edited, de-editing is implied to establish the operand's unedited numeric value, which can be signed; then the unedited numeric value is moved to the receiving field. The effect of de-editing depends on the setting of the DE-EDIT Compiler directive

   When a signed numeric item is the receiving item, the sign of the sending item is placed in the receiving item. (See the topic The SIGN Clause.) Conversion of the representation of the sign takes place as necessary. If the sending item is unsigned, a positive sign is generated for the receiving item.

   When an unsigned numeric item is the receiving item, the absolute value of the sending item is moved and no operational sign is generated for the receiving item.

   When a data item described as alphanumeric is the sending item, data is moved as if the sending item were described as an unsigned numeric integer.

   When the receiving item is numeric or numeric-edited and the sending item is defined as alphanumeric, if the content of the sending item is not an integer, the results of the move are undefined. If the alphanumeric sending item is a literal whose contents do not represent an integer, an error is reported, and zero moved to the target. (See the topic Incompatible Data in the chapter Procedure Division.)

    When the numeric data item is the sending item the action of the move is such that a reverse of the move would cause the same value to appear in the numeric-edited field (except for truncation). If the data item contains data which does not conform to the edited picture, zero is moved to the target.

3. When a receiving field is described as alphabetic, justification and any necessary space-filling takes place as defined in the topic Standard Alignment Rules in the chapter Concepts of the COBOL Language. If the size of the sending item is greater than the size of the receiving item, the excess characters are truncated on the right after the receiving item is filled.
4.  When the receiving field is floating-point, the sending item is converted first to internal floating-point and then moved. When data is moved to or from an external floating-point item, the data is converted first to or from its equivalent internal floating-point value.
5.  When the receiving field is DBCS the sending item must be DBCS or national; no conversion takes place. If the sending and receiving items are not the same size the data item is either truncated or padded with DBCS spaces on the right.

    When the receiving field is national the sending item must be DBCS or national; no conversion takes place. If the sending and receiving items are not the same size the data item is either truncated or padded with national spaces on the right.

 The process is repeated for each destination group.