July 11 (Bloomberg) -- Zimbabwe's central bank Governor Gideon Gono said proposed sanctions against President Robert Mugabe and some senior officials would harm the economy and worsen the ``suffering of ordinary people.''

Sanctions would ``deepen and spread conflict'' in Zimbabwe, Gono said in an interview with the state-controlled Herald newspaper, according to a copy e-mailed by the central bank today.

The United Nations Security Council yesterday delayed consideration of sanctions targeting Mugabe and 13 of his officials to give African mediators more time to arrange talks with his opponents. The U.S. also wants the UN to impose an arms embargo against Zimbabwe.

Mugabe, 84, extended his 28-year rule of Zimbabwe in a June 27 presidential runoff election that the U.S. called a ``sham'' after opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai withdrew from the poll, citing state-sponsored violence against his supporters.

``It seems to me irresponsible that the United Nations Security Council should even bring itself to entertaining such moves whose only impact would be to widen and deepen the humanitarian crisis in Zimbabwe,'' Gono said.

Political conflict since the March 29 general election ``cannot be good for the economy,'' said Gono, who has led the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe since 2003.

Zimbabwe is in its 10th year of a recession and has the world's highest inflation rate of at least 355,000 percent. Inflation may be as high as 9 million percent, the Harare-based Independent newspaper said June 27, citing unidentified officials at the Central Statistics Office.

To contact the reporters on this story: Nasreen Seria in Johannesburg at nseria@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 11, 2008 12:09 EDT