FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Economists at the European Central Bank say that the U.S. corporate tax cut should lift the world's largest economy in the short term but could erode the tax base in European countries by intensifying global competition for lower rates.

Their short article, released Monday and set to appear Thursday in the ECB's regular economic bulletin, says that the cut in business taxes will provide a "significant fiscal stimulus" to growth in the U.S. and would be "positive in the short term."

It warned that long-term effects were less clear, especially if the cut leads to larger U.S. budget deficits.

Effects on the 19-country eurozone were "highly uncertain and complex" but could include tax base erosion if countries around the world compete by lowering their tax rates to attract businesses.