Which of the following correctly represents multiplication operations in the order of operations?

In the order of operations, multiplication is performed before addition and subtraction, but it does not have the highest priority overall based on the sequence of operations. According to the standard order of operations (often remembered by the acronym PEMDAS, which stands for Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication and Division (from left to right), Addition and Subtraction (from left to right)), multiplication ranks equally with division. These operations are performed from left to right in the order they appear in the equation.

When analyzing the options, the correct answer highlights that multiplication is one of the foundational operations that are performed early in the arithmetic sequence, specifically before the final steps of addition and subtraction. Therefore, understanding this positioning is crucial for correctly calculating expressions that involve multiple operations.