Europe stocks extend gains as US home prices rise

LONDON Aug 25 (Reuters) - European shares extended gains in afternoon trade on Tuesday after prices of U.S. single-family homes rose for the second consecutive month in June.

By 1309 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top shares was up 0.3 percent at 977.81 points after falling to a low of 967.98 points earlier in the session.

The S&P/Case-Shiller composite indexes of 10 and 20 metropolitan areas both rose 1.4 percent in June from May, almost three times the 0.5 percent increases of the month before. May's increases were the first in nearly three years.

Telecom stocks featured among top gainers in Europe. Vodafone (VOD.L), France Telecom (FTE.PA) and Deutsche Telekom (DTEGn.DE) were up 1.8 to 3.2 percent. (Reporting by Joanne Frearson)