diff --git a/asm-utils/src/data_parser.rs b/asm-utils/src/data_parser.rs
index 63b97520f..c5a49128a 100644
--- a/asm-utils/src/data_parser.rs
+++ b/asm-utils/src/data_parser.rs
@@ -1,11 +1,13 @@
-use std::collections::BTreeMap;
-
-use crate::ast::{Argument, BinaryOpKind, Expression, FunctionOpKind, Register, Statement};
+use crate::{
+    ast::{Argument, BinaryOpKind, Expression, FunctionOpKind, Register, Statement},
+    utils::{alignment_size, split_at_first},
+};
 
 #[derive(Debug)]
 pub enum DataValue {
     Direct(Vec<u8>),
     Zero(usize),
+    Alignment(usize),
     Reference(String),
     // This is needed for .word diretives such as
     // .word	.Lfunc_begin0-.Lfunc_begin0
@@ -14,76 +16,140 @@ pub enum DataValue {
 
 impl DataValue {
     /// Returns the size of the value in bytes.
-    pub fn size(&self) -> usize {
+    ///
+    /// The address is necessary because the size of the alignment padding
+    /// depends on what address it is defined on.
+    pub fn size(&self, from_addr: usize) -> usize {
         match self {
             DataValue::Direct(data) => data.len(),
             DataValue::Zero(length) => *length,
+            DataValue::Alignment(bytes) => alignment_size(from_addr, *bytes),
             DataValue::Reference(_) => 4,
             DataValue::Offset(..) => 4,
         }
     }
 }
 
+#[derive(Default)]
+struct DataSections {
+    /// This is a vector of sections, where each section is a vector of (maybe
+    /// named) labels, which in turn contains a sequence of data values.
+    ///
+    /// I weighted against making this and a potential `struct Section` part of
+    /// the public API because the users would need to know and access all the
+    /// internals anyway, so it wouldn't be abstracting away any complexity.
+    sections: Vec<Vec<(Option<String>, Vec<DataValue>)>>,
+}
+
+impl DataSections {
+    fn new() -> Self {
+        Default::default()
+    }
+
+    fn current_entry(&mut self) -> &mut Vec<DataValue> {
+        let last_section = self.sections.last_mut().unwrap();
+        if last_section.is_empty() {
+            last_section.push((None, Vec::new()))
+        }
+        &mut last_section.last_mut().unwrap().1
+    }
+
+    fn append_label_to_curr_section(&mut self, label: &str) {
+        let last_section = self.sections.last_mut().unwrap();
+        last_section.push((Some(label.to_owned()), Vec::new()));
+    }
+
+    fn append_section(&mut self) {
+        self.sections.push(Vec::new())
+    }
+}
+
 /// Extract all data objects from the list of statements.
 /// Returns the named data objects themselves and a vector of the names
 /// in the order in which they occur in the statements.
 pub fn extract_data_objects<R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind>(
     statements: &[Statement<R, F>],
-) -> (BTreeMap<String, Vec<DataValue>>, Vec<String>) {
-    let mut current_label = None;
-    // TODO the way these collections are used here looks hacky.
-    // It might need a more function reimpl.
-    let mut object_order = vec![];
-    let mut objects = BTreeMap::new();
+) -> Vec<Vec<(Option<String>, Vec<DataValue>)>> {
+    let mut data = DataSections::new();
+
+    let mut is_in_data_section = false;
+
     for s in statements {
         match s {
             Statement::Label(l) => {
-                current_label = Some(l.as_str());
+                if is_in_data_section {
+                    data.append_label_to_curr_section(l);
+                }
             }
             Statement::Directive(dir, args) => match (dir.as_str(), &args[..]) {
-                (
-                    ".type",
-                    [Argument::Expression(Expression::Symbol(name)), Argument::Expression(Expression::Symbol(kind))],
-                ) if kind.as_str() == "@object" => {
-                    object_order.push(name.clone());
-                    assert!(objects.insert(name.clone(), vec![]).is_none());
+                (".text", args) => {
+                    assert!(args.is_empty());
+                    is_in_data_section = false;
                 }
-                (".zero" | ".ascii" | ".asciz" | ".word" | ".byte", args) => {
-                    let label = current_label.unwrap().to_string();
-                    objects
-                        .entry(label.clone())
-                        .or_insert_with(|| {
-                            object_order.push(label);
-                            Default::default()
-                        })
-                        .extend(extract_data_value(dir.as_str(), args));
+                (".data", args) => {
+                    assert!(args.is_empty());
+                    is_in_data_section = true;
+                    data.append_section();
+                }
+                (".section", args) => {
+                    is_in_data_section = is_data_section(&args[0]);
+                    if is_in_data_section {
+                        data.append_section();
+                    }
                 }
                 (
-                    ".size",
-                    [Argument::Expression(Expression::Symbol(name)), Argument::Expression(Expression::Number(n))],
-                ) if Some(name.as_str()) == current_label => {
-                    let label = current_label.unwrap().to_string();
-                    objects
-                        .entry(current_label.unwrap().into())
-                        .and_modify(|entry| {
-                            let size: usize = entry.iter().map(|v| v.size()).sum();
-                            assert!(
-                                size as i64 == *n,
-                                "Invalid size for data object {name}: computed: {size} vs. specified: {n}"
-                            );
-                        })
-                        .or_insert_with(|| {
-                            object_order.push(label);
-                            assert!(*n == 0, "Nonzero size for object without elements: {name}");
-                            Default::default()
-                        });
+                    ".zero" | ".ascii" | ".asciz" | ".dword" | ".word" | ".half" | ".hword"
+                    | ".short" | ".byte",
+                    args,
+                ) => {
+                    if is_in_data_section {
+                        data.current_entry()
+                            .extend(extract_data_value(dir.as_str(), args));
+                    } else {
+                        // This is most likely debug data.
+                    }
+                }
+                (".balign", [Argument::Expression(Expression::Number(byte_size))]) => {
+                    if is_in_data_section {
+                        data.current_entry()
+                            .push(DataValue::Alignment(*byte_size as usize));
+                    }
+                }
+                (".p2align", [Argument::Expression(Expression::Number(pow_of_2))]) => {
+                    if is_in_data_section {
+                        data.current_entry()
+                            .push(DataValue::Alignment((1 << pow_of_2) as usize));
+                    }
+                }
+                (".balign" | ".p2align", _) => {
+                    // TODO: implement the optional arguments of .balign and .p2align
+                    unimplemented!()
                 }
                 _ => {}
             },
             _ => {}
         }
     }
-    (objects, object_order)
+    data.sections
+}
+
+fn is_data_section<R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind>(arg: &Argument<R, F>) -> bool {
+    let full_name = match arg {
+        Argument::StringLiteral(name) => name.as_slice(),
+        Argument::Expression(Expression::Symbol(name)) => name.as_bytes(),
+        _ => return false,
+    };
+
+    // split out the part before the initial '.'
+    let name = split_at_first(full_name, &b'.').1.unwrap();
+
+    // isolate name until next '.'
+    let name = split_at_first(name, &b'.').0;
+
+    matches!(
+        name,
+        b"sbss" | b"tbss" | b"bss" | b"sdata" | b"tdata" | b"rodata" | b"data" | b"data1"
+    )
 }
 
 fn extract_data_value<R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind>(
@@ -109,6 +175,25 @@ fn extract_data_value<R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind>(
             data.push(0);
             vec![DataValue::Direct(data)]
         }
+        (".dword" | ".half" | ".hword" | ".short" | ".byte", data) => {
+            let len = match directive {
+                ".dword" => 8,
+                ".byte" => 1,
+                _ => 2,
+            };
+
+            let mut bytes = Vec::with_capacity(data.len() * len);
+            for arg in data {
+                let Argument::Expression(Expression::Number(n)) = arg else {
+                    panic!("only literals are supported for .{directive}");
+                };
+                for byte in 0..len {
+                    bytes.push((n >> (byte * 8) & 0xff) as u8);
+                }
+            }
+
+            vec![DataValue::Direct(bytes)]
+        }
         (".word", data) => data
             .iter()
             .map(|x| match x {
@@ -133,20 +218,6 @@ fn extract_data_value<R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind>(
                 _ => panic!("Invalid .word directive"),
             })
             .collect::<Vec<DataValue>>(),
-        (".byte", data) => {
-            // TODO alignment?
-            vec![DataValue::Direct(
-                data.iter()
-                    .map(|x| {
-                        if let Argument::Expression(Expression::Number(n)) = x {
-                            *n as u8
-                        } else {
-                            panic!("Invalid argument to .byte directive")
-                        }
-                    })
-                    .collect::<Vec<u8>>(),
-            )]
-        }
         _ => panic!(),
     }
 }
diff --git a/asm-utils/src/data_storage.rs b/asm-utils/src/data_storage.rs
index 5946570f7..d9f430fe8 100644
--- a/asm-utils/src/data_storage.rs
+++ b/asm-utils/src/data_storage.rs
@@ -2,76 +2,157 @@
 
 use std::collections::BTreeMap;
 
-use crate::{data_parser::DataValue, utils::next_multiple_of_four};
+use crate::{
+    data_parser::DataValue,
+    utils::{alignment_size, next_aligned},
+};
 
 pub enum SingleDataValue<'a> {
     Value(u32),
-    LabelReference(&'a String),
-    Offset(&'a String, &'a String),
+    LabelReference(&'a str),
+    Offset(&'a str, &'a str),
 }
 
-pub fn store_data_objects<'a>(
-    objects: impl IntoIterator<Item = &'a (String, Vec<DataValue>)> + Copy,
+struct WordWriter<'a, 'b> {
+    data_writer: &'a mut dyn FnMut(u32, SingleDataValue) -> Vec<String>,
+    partial: u32,
+    current_pos: u32,
+    generated_code: Vec<String>,
+
+    latest_label: Option<&'b str>,
+}
+
+impl<'a, 'b> WordWriter<'a, 'b> {
+    fn new(
+        starting_pos: u32,
+        data_writer: &'a mut dyn FnMut(u32, SingleDataValue) -> Vec<String>,
+    ) -> Self {
+        // sanitary alignment to 8 bytes
+        let current_pos = next_aligned(starting_pos as usize, 8) as u32;
+        Self {
+            partial: 0,
+            current_pos,
+            data_writer,
+            generated_code: Vec::new(),
+            latest_label: None,
+        }
+    }
+
+    fn current_position(&self) -> u32 {
+        self.current_pos
+    }
+
+    fn set_label(&mut self, label: &'b str) {
+        self.latest_label = Some(label)
+    }
+
+    fn advance(&mut self, bytes: u32) {
+        let next_pos = self.current_pos + bytes;
+
+        // if changed words, flush
+        let curr_word = self.current_pos & (!0b11);
+        if (next_pos & (!0b11) != curr_word) && (self.partial != 0) {
+            if let Some(label) = std::mem::take(&mut self.latest_label) {
+                self.generated_code.push(format!("// data {label}"));
+            }
+
+            self.generated_code.extend((*self.data_writer)(
+                curr_word,
+                SingleDataValue::Value(self.partial),
+            ));
+            self.partial = 0;
+        }
+        self.current_pos = next_pos;
+    }
+
+    fn align(&mut self, alignment: u32) {
+        let padding_size = alignment_size(self.current_pos as usize, alignment as usize);
+        if padding_size != 0 {
+            self.advance(padding_size as u32);
+        }
+    }
+
+    fn write_bytes(&mut self, bytes: &[u8]) {
+        for b in bytes {
+            self.partial |= (*b as u32) << (8 * (self.current_pos % 4));
+            self.advance(1);
+        }
+    }
+
+    fn write_label_reference(&mut self, label: &str) {
+        assert_eq!(
+            self.current_pos % 4,
+            0,
+            "reference to code labels in misaligned data section is not supported"
+        );
+
+        self.generated_code.extend((*self.data_writer)(
+            self.current_pos,
+            SingleDataValue::LabelReference(label),
+        ));
+
+        assert_eq!(self.partial, 0);
+        self.current_pos += 4;
+    }
+
+    fn finish(mut self) -> Vec<String> {
+        // ensure the latest partial word is written
+        self.advance(4);
+
+        self.generated_code
+    }
+}
+
+pub fn store_data_objects(
+    sections: Vec<Vec<(Option<String>, Vec<DataValue>)>>,
     memory_start: u32,
     code_gen: &mut dyn FnMut(u32, SingleDataValue) -> Vec<String>,
 ) -> (Vec<String>, BTreeMap<String, u32>) {
-    let mut current_pos = ((memory_start + 7) / 8) * 8;
-    let mut positions = BTreeMap::new();
-    for (name, data) in objects.into_iter() {
-        // TODO check if we need to use multiples of four.
-        let size: u32 = data
-            .iter()
-            .map(|d| next_multiple_of_four(d.size()) as u32)
-            .sum();
-        positions.insert(name.clone(), current_pos);
-        current_pos += size;
-    }
+    let mut writer = WordWriter::new(memory_start, code_gen);
 
-    let code = objects
-        .into_iter()
-        .flat_map(|(name, data)| {
-            let mut object_code = vec![];
-            let mut pos = positions[name];
-            for item in data {
-                match &item {
-                    DataValue::Zero(_length) => {
-                        // We can assume memory to be zero-initialized,
-                        // so we do nothing.
-                    }
-                    DataValue::Direct(bytes) => {
-                        for i in (0..bytes.len()).step_by(4) {
-                            let v = (0..4)
-                                .map(|j| {
-                                    (bytes.get(i + j).cloned().unwrap_or_default() as u32)
-                                        << (j * 8)
-                                })
-                                .sum();
-                            // We can assume memory to be zero-initialized.
-                            if v != 0 {
-                                object_code
-                                    .extend(code_gen(pos + i as u32, SingleDataValue::Value(v)));
-                            }
-                        }
-                    }
-                    DataValue::Reference(sym) => {
-                        object_code.extend(if let Some(p) = positions.get(sym) {
-                            code_gen(pos, SingleDataValue::Value(*p))
-                        } else {
-                            // code reference
-                            code_gen(pos, SingleDataValue::LabelReference(sym))
-                        })
-                    }
-                    DataValue::Offset(l, r) => {
-                        object_code.extend(code_gen(pos, SingleDataValue::Offset(l, r)));
+    let positions = {
+        let mut positions = BTreeMap::new();
+        let mut current_pos = writer.current_position();
+        for (name, data) in sections.iter().flatten() {
+            if let Some(name) = name {
+                positions.insert(name.clone(), current_pos);
+            }
+            for d in data.iter() {
+                current_pos += d.size(current_pos as usize) as u32;
+            }
+        }
+        positions
+    };
+
+    for (name, data) in sections.iter().flatten() {
+        if let Some(name) = name {
+            writer.set_label(name);
+        }
+        for item in data {
+            match &item {
+                DataValue::Zero(length) => {
+                    // We can assume memory to be zero-initialized, so we
+                    // just have to advance.
+                    writer.advance(*length as u32);
+                }
+                DataValue::Direct(bytes) => {
+                    writer.write_bytes(bytes);
+                }
+                DataValue::Reference(sym) => {
+                    if let Some(p) = positions.get(sym) {
+                        writer.write_bytes(&p.to_le_bytes());
+                    } else {
+                        // code reference
+                        writer.write_label_reference(sym);
                     }
                 }
-                pos += item.size() as u32;
+                DataValue::Alignment(bytes) => {
+                    writer.align(*bytes as u32);
+                }
+                DataValue::Offset(_l, _r) => unimplemented!(),
             }
-            if let Some(first_line) = object_code.first_mut() {
-                *first_line = format!("// data {name}\n") + first_line;
-            }
-            object_code
-        })
-        .collect();
-    (code, positions)
+        }
+    }
+
+    (writer.finish(), positions)
 }
diff --git a/asm-utils/src/reachability.rs b/asm-utils/src/reachability.rs
index 93bbd7326..51e51002a 100644
--- a/asm-utils/src/reachability.rs
+++ b/asm-utils/src/reachability.rs
@@ -10,24 +10,34 @@ use crate::ast::{Argument, Expression, FunctionOpKind, Register, Statement};
 /// Processes the statements and removes all statements and objects that are
 /// not reachable from the label `label`.
 /// Keeps the order of the statements.
-pub fn filter_reachable_from<R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind, A: Architecture>(
+pub fn filter_reachable_from<'a, R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind, A: Architecture>(
     label: &str,
     statements: &mut Vec<Statement<R, F>>,
-    objects: &mut BTreeMap<String, Vec<DataValue>>,
-) {
+    data_sections: &'a mut Vec<Vec<(Option<String>, Vec<DataValue>)>>,
+) -> HashSet<&'a str> {
     let replacements = extract_replacements(statements);
     let replacement_refs = replacements
         .iter()
         .map(|(k, v)| (k.as_str(), v.as_str()))
         .collect();
-    let referenced_labels =
-        find_reachable_labels::<R, F, A>(label, statements, objects, &replacement_refs)
-            .into_iter()
-            .map(|s| s.to_owned())
-            .collect::<HashSet<_>>();
+    let (referenced_labels, referenced_data_sections) =
+        find_reachable_labels::<R, F, A>(label, statements, data_sections, &replacement_refs);
+
+    {
+        let mut iter_idx = 0usize;
+        data_sections.retain(|_| {
+            let must_retain = referenced_data_sections.contains(&iter_idx);
+            iter_idx += 1;
+            must_retain
+        });
+    }
+
+    let mut remaining_data_labels = HashSet::new();
+    for (name, value) in data_sections.iter_mut().flatten() {
+        if let Some(label) = name {
+            remaining_data_labels.insert(label.as_str());
+        }
 
-    objects.retain(|name, _value| referenced_labels.contains(name));
-    for (_name, value) in objects.iter_mut() {
         apply_replacement_to_object(value, &replacement_refs)
     }
 
@@ -42,10 +52,12 @@ pub fn filter_reachable_from<R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind, A: Architecture>(
                 true
             } else {
                 if let Statement::Label(l) = &s {
-                    active = referenced_labels.contains(l) && !objects.contains_key(l);
+                    active = referenced_labels.contains(l)
+                        && !remaining_data_labels.contains(l.as_str());
                 }
                 active
             };
+
             if include {
                 apply_replacement_to_instruction(&mut s, &replacement_refs);
                 Some(s)
@@ -54,27 +66,44 @@ pub fn filter_reachable_from<R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind, A: Architecture>(
             }
         })
         .collect();
+
+    remaining_data_labels
 }
 
 #[allow(clippy::print_stderr)]
 pub fn find_reachable_labels<'a, R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind, A: Architecture>(
     label: &'a str,
     statements: &'a [Statement<R, F>],
-    objects: &'a mut BTreeMap<String, Vec<DataValue>>,
+    data_sections: &'a [Vec<(Option<String>, Vec<DataValue>)>],
     replacements: &BTreeMap<&str, &'a str>,
-) -> BTreeSet<&'a str> {
+) -> (HashSet<String>, HashSet<usize>) {
+    // Maps each data label to the section they belong to
+    let all_data_labels: BTreeMap<&str, usize> = data_sections
+        .iter()
+        .enumerate()
+        .flat_map(|(section_idx, entries)| {
+            entries
+                .iter()
+                .filter_map(move |(name, _)| name.as_ref().map(|name| (name.as_str(), section_idx)))
+        })
+        .collect();
+
     let label_offsets = extract_label_offsets(statements);
     let mut queued_labels = BTreeSet::from([label]);
-    let mut processed_labels = BTreeSet::<&str>::new();
+    let mut processed_labels = HashSet::new();
+    let mut reached_data_sections = HashSet::new();
     while let Some(l) = queued_labels.pop_first() {
         let l = *replacements.get(l).unwrap_or(&l);
-        if !processed_labels.insert(l) {
+        if !processed_labels.insert(l.to_owned()) {
             continue;
         }
 
-        let new_references = if let Some(data_values) = objects.get(l) {
-            data_values
+        let new_references = if let Some(section_idx) = all_data_labels.get(l) {
+            reached_data_sections.insert(*section_idx);
+            let section = &data_sections[*section_idx];
+            section
                 .iter()
+                .flat_map(|(_, values)| values.iter())
                 .filter_map(|v| {
                     if let DataValue::Reference(sym) = v {
                         Some(sym.as_str())
@@ -86,7 +115,7 @@ pub fn find_reachable_labels<'a, R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind, A: Architecture
         } else if let Some(offset) = label_offsets.get(l) {
             let (referenced_labels_in_block, seen_labels_in_block) =
                 basic_block_references_starting_from::<R, F, A>(&statements[*offset..]);
-            processed_labels.extend(seen_labels_in_block);
+            processed_labels.extend(seen_labels_in_block.into_iter().map(|s| s.to_string()));
             referenced_labels_in_block
         } else {
             eprintln!(
@@ -102,7 +131,7 @@ pub fn find_reachable_labels<'a, R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind, A: Architecture
         }
     }
 
-    processed_labels
+    (processed_labels, reached_data_sections)
 }
 
 fn extract_replacements<R: Register, F: FunctionOpKind>(
diff --git a/asm-utils/src/utils.rs b/asm-utils/src/utils.rs
index 79e126314..faa5c6033 100644
--- a/asm-utils/src/utils.rs
+++ b/asm-utils/src/utils.rs
@@ -1,7 +1,34 @@
 use crate::ast::{Argument, Expression, FunctionOpKind, Register};
 
-pub fn next_multiple_of_four(x: usize) -> usize {
-    ((x + 3) / 4) * 4
+pub fn next_aligned(val: usize, alignment: usize) -> usize {
+    // Alignment will probably always be a power of two, which can be aligned in
+    // a much faster bitwise operation. But then we would have to assert!() it,
+    // so it is just better to use the generic version.
+    ((val + (alignment - 1)) / alignment) * alignment
+}
+
+/// Padding to next alignment boundary, in bytes.
+pub fn alignment_size(from: usize, alignment: usize) -> usize {
+    let dest = next_aligned(from, alignment);
+    dest - from
+}
+
+/// Split an slice as before and after the first occurrence of an element.
+///
+/// The second return value is None if the element is not found.
+pub fn split_at_first<'a, T: Eq>(s: &'a [T], elem: &T) -> (&'a [T], Option<&'a [T]>) {
+    match s.iter().position(|e| e == elem) {
+        Some(idx) => (&s[..idx], Some(&s[(idx + 1)..])),
+        None => (s, None),
+    }
+}
+
+/// Find the position of the next given element in an iterable.
+pub fn find_position<T: Eq, I: Iterator<Item = T>>(
+    seq: impl IntoIterator<IntoIter = I>,
+    elem: T,
+) -> Option<usize> {
+    seq.into_iter().position(|e| e == elem)
 }
 
 pub fn quote(s: &str) -> String {
diff --git a/riscv/src/compiler.rs b/riscv/src/compiler.rs
index 58db2b616..8987f578e 100644
--- a/riscv/src/compiler.rs
+++ b/riscv/src/compiler.rs
@@ -1,12 +1,12 @@
 use std::{
-    collections::{BTreeMap, BTreeSet},
+    collections::{BTreeMap, BTreeSet, HashSet},
     fmt,
 };
 
 use itertools::Itertools;
 use powdr_asm_utils::{
     ast::{BinaryOpKind, UnaryOpKind},
-    data_parser::{self, DataValue},
+    data_parser,
     data_storage::{store_data_objects, SingleDataValue},
     parser::parse_asm,
     reachability::{self, symbols_in_args},
@@ -123,35 +123,25 @@ pub fn compile(
             .map(|(name, contents)| (name, parse_asm(RiscParser::default(), &contents)))
             .collect(),
     );
-    let (mut objects, object_order) = data_parser::extract_data_objects(&statements);
-    assert_eq!(objects.keys().len(), object_order.len());
+    let mut data_sections = data_parser::extract_data_objects(&statements);
 
     // Reduce to the code that is actually reachable from main
     // (and the objects that are referred from there)
-    reachability::filter_reachable_from::<_, _, RiscvArchitecture>(
+    let data_labels = reachability::filter_reachable_from::<_, _, RiscvArchitecture>(
         "__runtime_start",
         &mut statements,
-        &mut objects,
+        &mut data_sections,
     );
 
     // Replace dynamic references to code labels
-    replace_dynamic_label_references(&mut statements, &objects);
+    replace_dynamic_label_references(&mut statements, &data_labels);
 
     // Remove the riscv asm stub function, which is used
     // for compilation, and will not be called.
     statements = replace_coprocessor_stubs(statements, coprocessors).collect::<Vec<_>>();
 
-    let sorted_objects = object_order
-        .into_iter()
-        .filter_map(|n| {
-            let value = objects.get_mut(&n).map(std::mem::take);
-            value.map(|v| (n, v))
-        })
-        .collect::<Vec<_>>();
-    let (data_code, data_positions) = store_data_objects(
-        &sorted_objects,
-        data_start,
-        &mut |addr, value| match value {
+    let (data_code, data_positions) =
+        store_data_objects(data_sections, data_start, &mut |addr, value| match value {
             SingleDataValue::Value(v) => {
                 vec![format!("mstore 0x{addr:x}, 0x{v:x};")]
             }
@@ -179,8 +169,7 @@ pub fn compile(
                 ]);
                 */
             }
-        },
-    );
+        });
 
     let submachine_init = call_every_submachine(coprocessors);
     let bootloader_lines = if with_bootloader {
@@ -241,10 +230,7 @@ pub fn compile(
 /// Replace certain patterns of references to code labels by
 /// special instructions. We ignore any references to data objects
 /// because they will be handled differently.
-fn replace_dynamic_label_references(
-    statements: &mut Vec<Statement>,
-    data_objects: &BTreeMap<String, Vec<DataValue>>,
-) {
+fn replace_dynamic_label_references(statements: &mut Vec<Statement>, data_labels: &HashSet<&str>) {
     /*
     Find patterns of the form
     lui	a0, %hi(LABEL)
@@ -272,7 +258,7 @@ fn replace_dynamic_label_references(
     let mut to_delete = BTreeSet::default();
     for (i1, i2) in instruction_indices.into_iter().tuple_windows() {
         if let Some(r) =
-            replace_dynamic_label_reference(&statements[i1], &statements[i2], data_objects)
+            replace_dynamic_label_reference(&statements[i1], &statements[i2], data_labels)
         {
             to_delete.insert(i1);
             statements[i2] = r;
@@ -286,7 +272,7 @@ fn replace_dynamic_label_references(
 fn replace_dynamic_label_reference(
     s1: &Statement,
     s2: &Statement,
-    data_objects: &BTreeMap<String, Vec<DataValue>>,
+    data_labels: &HashSet<&str>,
 ) -> Option<Statement> {
     let Statement::Instruction(instr1, args1) = s1 else {
         return None;
@@ -314,7 +300,7 @@ fn replace_dynamic_label_reference(
     let Expression::Symbol(label2) = expr2.as_ref() else {
         return None;
     };
-    if r1 != r3 || label1 != label2 || data_objects.contains_key(label1) {
+    if r1 != r3 || label1 != label2 || data_labels.contains(label1.as_str()) {
         return None;
     }
     Some(Statement::Instruction(