NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Stocks managed gains Wednesday, recovering after a tough morning, as oil prices slumped and a brief security scare in Washington was resolved quickly.

Stock futures point to a mixed open Thursday, when fair value is taken into account. Thursday brings earnings from a number of retailers as well as April retail sales.

The broad Standard & Poor's 500 (up 4.89 to 1,171.11, Charts) index and the Nasdaq composite (up 8.78 to 1,971.55, Charts) index both gained around 0.4 percent.

The Dow Jones industrial average (up 19.14 to 10,300.25, Charts) added 0.2 percent, limited by weakness in General Motors.

Oil prices sank 3 percent after the government's weekly inventory report showed a solid increase. U.S. light crude for June delivery sank $1.62 to settle at $50.45 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The Dow had tumbled as low as 10,185 in the early afternoon after the White House and Capitol were briefly evacuated when a small plane violated restricted airspace over Washington.

But stocks stabilized after the all-clear was sounded and later turned higher after authorities forced the Cessna plane to land in Maryland and the pilot was detained.

The stock recovery near the close was likely a combination of relief about the security incident and "a delayed reaction to the initial decline in oil prices," said Peter Cardillo, chief market analyst at S.W. Bach & Co.

Earnings are due early Thursday from Target and Wal-Mart Stores. Target is expected to have 54 cents per share, up from 48 cents a year ago, according to forecasts. Wal-Mart is expected to have earned 56 cents per share, six cents more than a year ago.

More likely to move the market: March retail sales, also due Thursday. Sales are expected to have risen 0.7 percent in the month, after rising 0.3 percent in March. Sales excluding autos are expected to have risen 0.5 percent after rising 0.1 percent in March.

Gains in software and networking supported the tech-fueled Nasdaq.

Networking was particularly strong after Cisco Systems (up $0.34 to $18.55, Research) reported fiscal third-quarter earnings and sales late Tuesday that rose from a year earlier and edged past analysts' estimates.

The company also forecast fiscal fourth-quarter sales in a range that set the midpoint above forecasts, and fiscal-year 2005 sales in a range that was in line with estimates.

Netflix (up $1.37 to $12.95, Research) jumped 8 percent after investor Carl Icahn got nominated to the board of Blockbuster Inc. (Research) Investors apparently belive Icahn will shun Blockbuster's online investments, reducing competition for Netflix.

United Parcel Service (up $2.22 to $73.85, Research) gained after the package delivery firm reiterated its previous fiscal full-year profit growth forecast, but also said total volume growth for the second quarter is tracking ahead of estimates.

Among other active issues, Walt Disney Co. (down $0.28 to $26.67, Research) rose initially but then sank after the media company reported higher profits on strong results at its movie studio.

Online music providers slipped after Yahoo! (up $0.82 to $34.88, Research) said late Tuesday that it has launched a new online music subscription service. The service competes with RealNetworks (down $1.54 to $5.76, Research)' Rhapsody and Napster (down $1.70 to $4.65, Research) by offering lower prices.

Shares of both companies plunged in active Nasdaq trade. After the close, Napster reported a wider fiscal fourth-quarter loss but said revenue rose.

Apple (down $0.81 to $35.61, Research), owner of the popular iTunes service, slipped more modestly; the company is hit less directly by Yahoo! as its service is not based on a subscription model.

Shares of DreamWorks Animation SKG (down $4.45 to $32.05, Research) slumped in active New York Stock Exchange trade after reporting lower-than-expected earnings late Tuesday that fell from a year earlier, due in part to disappointing home video sales of "Shrek 2."

Delta Air Lines (down $0.23 to $2.74, Research) tumbled for the second session on new worries that it may have to file for bankruptcy. The air carrier warned Monday that it will post substantial losses in 2005, due to insufficient cash flow and the impact of high fuel prices and low airfares.

Market breadth was mixed. On the New York Stock Exchange, advancers topped decliners nine to seven on volume of 1.41 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, losers barely edged winners on volume of 1.74 billion shares.

Investors were also eyeing a surprise drop in the March trade gap, which failed to boost the market in early trading, but may have proven supportive as the day wore on.

The March trade gap narrowed to $55 billion, the government reported, versus expectations that it would grow to a record $62 billion. The trade gap stood at a downwardly revised $60.6 billion in February.

Still, concerns about the pace of economic growth and rumors that the weakness in GM had sent some hedge funds into a tailspin limited gains Wednesday, said Stephen Leeb, president of Leeb Capital.

General Motors (down $0.53 to $31.00, Research) lost another 1.7 percent Wednesday

The stock has been under pressure since Standard & Poor's cut the automaker's debt to "junk" last week, which could raise its borrowing costs and make it harder for the troubled automaker to compete globally. GM stock has been on a roller-coaster lately, rallying 15 percent the day before the downgrade on news that billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian is upping his stake in the company.

But selling pressure in the market overall was light, he said. "The volume has been low, you have oil unlikely to make any dramatic moves over the next few weeks, and I think we'll see gains over the next few weeks, once we get past this period."

Treasury prices were little changed, leaving the 10-year note yield at about 4.20 percent. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

In currency trading, the dollar rose versus the euro and the yen.

COMEX gold was even at $427.90 an ounce.