The TSX had a flat start to the week, falling 11.30 points to end the day at 11,963.84 while the TSX Venture climbed four points to 1,561.93.

The metals and mining sector also ended slightly underwater, down 0.19%, while the energy sector moved 0.13% lower.

Meanwhile, the gold price tumbled $11.20 to $1,124 an ounce, as did several gold stocks, including Yamana Gold (TSX: T-YRI), down 4.1% to $10.44, Iamgold (TSX: T-IMG), which fell 3.1% to $15.62 and Barrick Gold (TSX: T-ABX), which was down 1.7% to $40.84.

In other news, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation reported that the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts reached 196,700 units in February, up from an annual rate of 185,400 units in January.

On the TSX, shares of Quadra Mining (TSX: T-QUA) climbed 5.9% to $16.45, after the company announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with State Grid International Development, a wholly owned subsidiary of State Grid Corporation of China, for a joint venture that will develop and operate Quadra's Sierra Gorda project and Franke Mine and seek to invest in other prospective copper assets, initially in Chile.

The company also reported its fourth quarter results, including earnings of $46.4 million or 47 cents per share, up from a loss of $126.1 million or $1.94 per share in the fourth quarter of 2008, due to higher copper prices and to higher metal sales volumes in the quarter.

Also, Excellon Resources (TSX: T-EXN) gained 16.7% to 84 cents, as it announced that district-scale remapping of its Miguel Auza Property in Mexico has led to the recognition of at least six wide northwest-trending epithermal quartz veins, which the company says are “similar in character to those in many of the famous Bonanza-grade silver-gold vein camps of the nearby Fresnillo Silver Trend.”

On the Venture, shares of Dorato Resources (TSX: V-DRI) jumped 28% to $1.19, after the company reported final assay results from Minera Afrodita relating to drillhole TAR-012 in the Taricori Gold Zone in Peru, including 18m grading 41.58 g/t gold and 46.9 g/t silver.

In other moves, Research In Motion (TSX: T-RIM) climbed 5.5% to $75.48, CIC Energy Corp. (TSX: T-ELC) jumped 18% to $1.84, and Tasman Metals (TSX: V-TSM) surged 80% to $1.17.