Euro drops below $1.22 as peripheral yields rise!!! FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- The euro slumped below the $1.22 level versus the U.S. dollar Thursday, trading at its lowest level in more than two years, as Italian and Spanish government bonds unwound recent gains. The euro traded as low as $1.2171 and changed hands in recent action at $1.2181, down from $1.2226 in North American trade late Wednesday. Jeremy Stretch, currency strategist at CIBC in London, said the fall partly reflected nervousness ahead of an Italian auction of government bonds on Friday. Spanish and Italian yields were back on the rise after falling earlier in the week in response to Spanish bank-bailout plans. The decline also comes amid haven flows to the dollar and Japanese yen after minutes released Wednesday from the Federal Reserve's last meeting gave little indication that the U.S. central bank is ready to provide additional monetary stimulus, analysts said. [link to www.marketwatch.com]