The Russian government made a $117 million interest payment to foreign bondholders on Wednesday, averting what would have been its first foreign debt default since the Bolshevik Party shocked Western investors in 1918 by refusing to repay the borrowings of Czar Nicholas II.

The finance ministry has said its ability to make foreign payments has been hampered by sanctions. If Russia is unable to make the payments within a 30-day grace period, it will face its first default on international debt in more than a century.

Lawmakers in the United States have voted to raise the government's borrowing limit by $2.5 trillion, narrowly avoiding a catastrophic default. The Senate passed the measure 50-49. The new debt ceiling will give the US government enough space to borrow until 2023, after the midterm elections. Focus in Washington will now return to whether President Joe Biden can get his $1.75 trillion social spending plan, "Build Back Better", passed by the end of the year.